World Health Organization (WHO) chief scientist Soumya Swaminathan said Wednesday that there is “no evidence” that healthy children and adolescents need booster doses to fight Covid-19.
While vaccine immunity to the rapidly spreading Omicron variant of the coronavirus appears to have waned over time, more research needs to be done to determine who needs booster doses, Swaminathan said in a news release.
“There is currently no evidence that healthy children or healthy adolescents need boosters,” she said. “There is no evidence at all.”
The WHO chief scientist’s statement is a direct challenge to Covid-19-related measures being taken by several countries, including the launch of a separate booster vaccination programme given waning immunity to the main dose.
The U.S. leads the way in booster doses for children as the country’s top regulator, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), approved a third dose of Pfizer and BioNTech’s Covid-19 vaccine earlier this month as a vaccine for 12- to 15-year-olds of children are injected with “boosters”. Israel also provides boosters to 12-year-olds after opposition criticism that booster injections are just a for-profit business for pharmaceutical companies.
Last week, Germany became the latest country to join the list, with its drug regulator recommending booster shots for all children aged 12 to 17. Another European country, Hungary, has authorized similar booster shots for its teenage population.
However, WHO has not completely dismissed the need for booster shots for certain vulnerable segments of the population. Swaminathan said a group of leading experts will meet later this week to discuss the specifics of how countries should consider boosting their populations.
“The aim is to protect the most vulnerable, to protect those at risk of serious illness and death,” she said. “These are our elderly population, immunocompromised people with underlying medical conditions, and healthcare workers.”
Complete News Source : Hindustan Times
