Decision on 3rd COVID-19 vaccine dose very likely in September

Head of the National COIVID-19 Vaccination Coordination Committee (CNCAV) Valeriu Gheorghita said on Tuesday in September there will very likely be a decision on the administration of a third dose of COVID-19 vaccine to people at high risk of exposure, such as the healthcare workers, people with chronic diseases, those over 65 years of age. "There are discussions at the moment about the administration of the booster or, as it is known, the third dose, although we are rightly talking about a booster and not the third dose in people who are at high risk of exposure - and here we are talking, for example, about the category of healthcare and social workers, and people who are registered with chronic diseases, as well as people over the age of 65. The decision to administer dose three or the booster will be very likely this September. Basically, it would come eight months into the vaccination campaign," Gheorghita told a news conference at the Government House. He added that the relevant officials will take into account the "history of the disease." "A person who has gone through the disease and has gotten vaccinated with two doses is not precisely required to get the third dose of the vaccine, given that having already been ill of COVIDF-19 is an important factor in activating the immune response," said Gheorghita. He added that, pending a national decision on the third dose of vaccine, "the authorisation by the European Medicines Agency of this immunisation schedule is expected." "We are particularly interested in safety data and immunogenicity data," the military doctor explained. AGERPRES (RO - author: Daniel Florea, editor: Florin Marin; EN - author: Corneliu-Aurelian Colceriu, editor: Adina Panaitescu)