Friday March 18, the High Authority for Health (HAS) declared itself in favor of the opening of a 4th dose of vaccine once morest Covid for people over 65 at risk, on a voluntary basis. What are the arguments in favor of an additional booster shot?
If the vaccination pass is suspended, vaccination remains relevant. So much so that following the announcement of the opening of a possible 4th dose for the over 80s, HAS ruled on March 18 in favor of administering this 4th dose for people over the age of 65″who wish and who are either at very high risk for a severe form of the diseasedie, either polypathological”.
Vulnerability
The main argument of the HAS in favor of the administration of a new booster dose once morest Covid lies in the fragility of this segment of the population in the face of the disease. Indeed, the 4th dose has already been recommended for the over 80s and immunocompromised people, yet the HAS emphasizes the vulnerability of the over 65s.
“The latest French epidemiological data available show that it is still people aged 65 and over who remain the most at risk of developing a serious form of the disease and of dying”, says the press releasepointing out that as of March 10, “those over 60 thus represented 80% of patients hospitalized with Covid-19”.
Decreased vaccine effectiveness
The HAS also relies on several studies to recommend this new reminder. First of all, by recalling that the people who made a recall present a better protection once morest the virus than those with only a primary vaccination schedule. Then, because these same studies show, on the other hand, that “the protection conferred by the booster dose begins to decline following 3 months in people aged 60 and over”.
Thus, for the most fragile, reboosting immunity by stimulating a new booster dose appears beneficial for HAS.
six months apart
In its press release, the HAS specifies that this recommendation to carry out a 4th dose is not intended for the entire population given the current context of a close vaccination campaign and in the face of “uncertainties relating to the persistence of vaccine effectiveness of a second booster”.
Moreover “in order not to reduce the adherence of the population to vaccination by too frequent reminders, The HAS recommends in the event of a second booster to preferably respect an interval of at least 6 months with the first booster”, indicates the press release.
Remember, however, that the government has offered immunocompromised people over the age of 80 to receive a booster dose as early as 3 months following the injection of their last dose.
