Bahrain health officials strongly recommend COVID-19 booster shots for fully vaccinated

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Bahrain health officials have strongly recommended COVID-19 booster shots for fully vaccinated citizens and residents as a very strong protection against severe infection and death.

The National Medical Taskforce for Combatting the Coronavirus (COVID-19 yesterday stressed the importance of taking a booster shot within a maximum of six months after completing the second dose of the Sinopharm, Pfizer-BioNtech, Sputnik V, or AstraZeneca (Covieshield) vaccines.

Data from a global study showed a decrease in the effectiveness of Pfizer-BioNTech in the month following the second dose, from 88% to 74%.

The effectiveness of AstraZeneca decreased from 77% to 67% after four to five months following the second dose.

The study was based on data from more than one million individuals who received these vaccines.

The study by Britain’s ZOECOVID also showed that the protection provided by vaccines for the elderly and healthcare workers may drop to less than 50% by winter.

In line with medical research, the taskforce noted that a booster dose can increase efficacy levels and enhance the body’s immunity against COVID-19 and its variants, as well as reducing severity of symptoms and mortality rates in case of infection.

Those who meet the required criteria are encouraged to register for a booster dose by visiting the Ministry of Health’s website, healthalert.gov.bh, or via the “BeAware” application.