Health
Flu and Covid vaccination recommended for risk groups
Doctors recommend vaccination against Covid-19 for risk groups. photo
© Uwe Zucchi/dpa
The cold season is in full swing in Germany, but there seems to be vaccination fatigue. According to a medical representative, people at risk should get vaccinated.
In view of the increasing number of infections, medical representatives are appealing Risk groups to be vaccinated against Covid-19. “We have very low demand for vaccinations,” said Andreas Gassen, CEO of the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians, to “Welt am Sonntag”.
Gassen told the “Wams” and the “Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung” (“NOZ”) that many people are understandably tired of vaccinations because of the enormous public pressure for corona vaccinations. However, this could be problematic for risk groups. They should follow the vaccination recommendation in order to protect themselves – including against influenza. The vaccinations could also be combined: “Left arm flu, right arm Corona,” Gassen told the newspapers.
“It is always important to emphasize: Corona can still be a serious illness for particularly vulnerable groups without appropriate vaccination protection,” warned Markus Beier, chairman of the German Association of General Practitioners, in the “Wams”. The same applies to the flu. “In a particularly severe flu season, tens of thousands of people are known to die from this disease.” The Standing Vaccination Commission (Stiko) recommends that people aged 60 and over, but also those with underlying illnesses, get a flu vaccination – annually from October to mid-December.
According to Stiko, adults under the age of 60 usually have basic immunity against Covid-19 after two vaccinations and one illness or after three vaccinations. For people aged 60 and over or those who are at risk of a severe course of Covid-19, Stiko recommends further booster vaccinations twelve months after the last vaccination or illness – preferably in autumn. No Covid-19 vaccinations are currently necessary for healthy children and young people.
It would be helpful if there were “finally” single doses of the corona vaccine and not still six packs, Gassen told the “NOZ”. “The practices then have to call six vaccinated people together so that they don’t have to throw away any doses.”
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