The second booster dose of the anti-Covid vaccine is now open to people aged 60 and over, Olivier Véran announced this Thursday morning. This second booster dose (also called “fourth dose”) is open to seniors, whose last injection dates back more than six months and only on a voluntary basis, said the Minister of Health. “We will be able to open this second booster dose for French people aged 60 and over if they are six months from their last booster injection”, without it becoming compulsory, the minister said on RTL radio.
Until now, this dose was reserved for people aged 80 and over as well as residents of nursing homes, an announcement made by Jean Castex in mid-March in the face of the rebound of the pandemic.
A “higher risk of developing a severe form of Covid-19”
This Wednesday, European Union health authorities had given the green light to a second booster dose of Moderna and Pfizer’s Covid vaccines for people aged 80 and over, due to the “higher risk of developing a severe form of Covid-19 for this age group” and “the protection provided by a fourth dose”.
The European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) have on the other hand considered that there is currently “no conclusive evidence” within the EU that vaccine protection against serious diseases decreases significantly in adults aged 60 to 79. years, although they “will continue to monitor the data”.