4th dose of Covid vaccine: Castex leads the way, who would be affected? – Linternaute.com

4TH DOSE. A fourth dose of vaccine against Covid-19 could be applied in France. Jean Castex paved the way on Thursday January 6, 2022, even if this does not seem to be expected in a short time.

[Mise à jour le 6 janvier à 12h34] France is about to rush into the breach of the 4th dose of vaccine against Covid-19 opened in early December by Jean-François Delfraissy, president of the Scientific Council. This is what Jean Castex indicated on Thursday January 6, 2022 on BFMTV / RMC. The possibility of a new injection is hardly in doubt in the eyes of the Prime Minister. “As soon as our health authorities say yes […] we will go “towards the 4th dose, he said. This should not be done in the next few days but probably in the medium term, the head of government explaining to wait for the results obtained in Israel (read below). The first conclusions fell but the study must still be carried out until early summer.

For the time being, Jean Castex has therefore not given the timetable that the executive wishes to establish, simply specifying that he already imagines a gradual opening up according to scientific recommendations which would recommend, initially and as from the beginning, to prioritize people. the most fragile. In any case, “we are ready” he said.

Words clearer than those of Olivier Véran who had more vaguely mentioned on January 3 on France Inter that “the question [allait] arise quickly enough for fragile people in our country, immunocompromised people, very old people who are three or four months from their recall “, already opening the door to the 4th dose, even if he had” not the answer to this question. “At the beginning of December, the President of the Scientific Council, Jean-François Delfraissy, had put the subject on the table before the Committee on Social Affairs of the Senate:” It is possible that we need, at some point , of a fourth dose “.

Towards a 4th dose of vaccine against Covid in France, as in Israel?

The file should therefore soon arrive on the table. For the time being, the decision-making bodies “discuss[nt] with the scientists “, clarified Olivier Véran. Above all, France wishes first of all to observe the effectiveness of the fourth dose in Israel, which opened it since the beginning of the year to over 60s as well as to medical staff, after backpedaling. At the end of December, the Prime Minister of the Middle Eastern country had indeed announced that vaccination would be open to these two audiences as well as to vulnerable people, before suspending it on December 30. ‘absence of a study verifying whether the Omicron variant did not offer immunity to those who contracted it, thus sparing the population from a new injection. A clinical study was thus carried out on caregivers, leading to the authorization release of a 4th dose of Pfizer.

“This hesitation reflects the fact that we are still in a phase of uncertainty. We must give ourselves the time, the necessary weeks in front of us, to try to assess the best scientifically to base a possible decision of this type” , explained Alain Fischer, chairman of the Vaccine Strategy Orientation Council, on BFM TV January 3. “When we have their data, I imagine that we will move,” commented Olivier Véran. No timetable is therefore publicly studied.

However, in fact, a new booster has already started to be injected in France, on a very specific audience. This is what Alain Fisher announced, indicating that “for people who are very immunocompromised, we have already been on the 4th dose for a long time”. Without mentioning a gradual expansion according to age groups or medical specificities, or even a general opening. Olivier Véran however warned: “If we have a vaccine which is safe, effective and which should protect us over time, we would unfortunately get into the habit of having reminders from time to time”.

How effective for the 4th dose of vaccine against Covid?

If several scientific studies show the loss of effectiveness of doses of vaccine against Covid-19 over time, would the benefits of a fourth injection be real? A first study was carried out in Israel in early January, in a hospital center, with 150 caregivers. All had received their third dose at least four months ago. Tuesday January 4, 2022, the first results were announced: “the antibodies were multiplied by five, which indicates that the vaccine works and offers protection against serious complications”. The first encouraging data which, for the time being, in no way indicates the lifespan of these antibodies. The study has yet to be carried out for six months.