Single COVID-19 booster jab enough for now, says expert

Video courtesy of PTV 

One booster jab is enough for now to raise immunity against COVID-19, an infectious disease expert said on Tuesday. 

Dr. Rontgene Solante, head of the Adult Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine unit of the San Lazaro, said there was no sufficient data on immune response if vaccine doses are given every 3 or 6 months. 

"Ang importante d’yan na at this point in time, isang booster lang muna ang tatanggapin natin," he said in a televised public briefing. 

(What is important there at this point in time is let us accept just one booster.)

Israel's Health Ministry said on Sunday a fourth dose of COVID-19 vaccine given to people over 60 made them 3 times more resistant to serious illness than thrice-vaccinated people in the same age group. 

The ministry also said the fourth dose, or second booster, doubled resistance against infection compared with those in the age group who received only 3 shots of the vaccine. Israel began offering a fourth dose of the Pfizer/BioNtech vaccine to people over 60 earlier this month.

In the Philippines, around 57.2 million of the 109 million population have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19. At least 6.2 million have received booster jabs. 

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