Covid, new wave overwhelms Europe: “Immediately fourth dose for over 60s”

Covid runs all over Europe. “There is no doubt that the pandemic is not over yet and it is not the time to relax, because there are still many individuals at risk of serious illness”, says the director of the ECDC Andrea Ammon, insisting on the need to speed up the times. on the fourth dose of vaccine for over 60s. Read also In the last “three weeks” in Europe “we have observed an increase in notifications of cases and hospitalizations” for Covid-19 and “we expect that by the end of the month Omicron Ba.5 will be the variant dominant in most EU countries. What we see now signals the beginning of a new widespread wave of Covid-19 in the EU, similar to the one Portugal saw some time ago, “Ammon said in a hearing with the commission. special on the Covid-19 pandemic of the European Parliament, in Brussels. “There is no doubt – he added – that the pandemic is not over yet and it is not the time to relax, because there are still many individuals at risk of serious illness. I remember that the purpose of vaccinations is to avoid serious illness. and death “, he concludes. Although organizing a vaccination campaign to administer the fourth dose of Covid vaccine to the over 60s and the most vulnerable in the height of summer requires “some effort”, it is worth it, especially for countries where the wave caused by Omicron Ba. 5 is starting or is in an ascending phase, because in September, when the pandemic “peak” is reached, the impact of the booster would be “minor”, explained the director of the ECDC Andrea Ammon. “Let’s see that the vaccines available they are still effective against serious illness – continued Ammon – for this reason, with the EMA we advised “to administer a” second booster “to over 60s and frail subjects” to avoid a significant number of hospitalizations and deaths from Covid-19. This is particularly relevant for countries where the Ba.5 wave is starting or is in its ascendant phase. We have seen many countries preparing for the vaccination campaign a little later in September. It will require a few more. he effort to organize an immediate campaign, but now is the time to do it, because in September most of the countries will be at their peak or beyond and therefore the impact of the booster will be less “, she specified. While as regards the administration of a fourth dose of anti-Covid vaccine for people over 60 and people with a fragile clinical picture it is already recommended this summer, “the available data do not indicate that for people under 60 and not at risk of contracting the disease in severe form there is an advantage in doing a second booster now “.