Permanent Secretary for Health, Doctor James Fong says there is a need to have a discussion on the benefits of COVID-19 vaccine booster shots and assessments are underway on the actual impact of this.
Israel has said it will begin offering a third dose of the Pfizer vaccine to adults with weak immune systems but it was still weighing whether to make the booster available to the general public.
Reuters reports that the rapid spread of the Delta variant has sent vaccination rates in Israel back up as new infections have risen over the past month from single digits to around 450 a day, and the country has moved to fast-track its next Pfizer shipment.
The Israeli Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz said that effective immediately, adults with impaired immune systems who had received two doses of the Pfizer vaccine could get a booster shot, with a decision pending on wider distribution.
Pfizer and partner BioNTech SE, the main suppliers in a swift Israeli vaccination rollout that began in December, said they will ask U.S. and European regulators within weeks to authorize booster shots.
The two companies cited an increased risk of infection after six months in seeking permission for a third shot.
About half of the 46 patients presently hospitalised in Israel in severe condition are vaccinated, and the majority are from risk groups, according to the health authorities. About 5.7 million out of Israel’s 9.3 population has received at least one dose.
Speaking on the issue of booster shots being discussed, Doctor James Fong says they will need to discuss booster doses but the only thing that works is the same as what Singapore is doing.
He says these measures are vaccinate, test and isolate with stringent enforcement of hands, face and space.
Doctor Fong states the COVID-19 vaccine is for protection against severe disease and hospitalisation.
The Permanent Secretary also says Israel and Seychelles have a breakthrough in illnesses but there is minimal increase in hospitalisation.
