“If we see conclusive data on the need for a fourth dose, we must be prepared to act”EU Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides told the bloc’s ministers in a video conference.
The meeting was organized at short notice by the French government, which holds the rotating presidency of the EU, and focused on the need for a fourth dose and adapted vaccines against variants.
In a post-conference message posted on Twitter, Kyriakides said the priority must be to immunize the unvaccinated, who still make up a quarter of the EU population.
Hungary and Denmark, members of the bloc, have already decided to launch a fourth dose of vaccines. Copenhagen said it would do it for the most vulnerable, while the Hungarian government said everyone could receive it after consultation with a doctor.
Rollout of the fourth dose began in Israel last month, making it the first country to administer the so-called second booster dose. The campaign will continue despite preliminary results that the fourth dose is not enough to prevent Omicron infections.
The richest countries decided to accelerate the deployment of the third doses in the midst of a wave of new cases caused by the more contagious omicron variant, but they remain divided on the fourth. Many feel that more data is needed before deciding.
The meeting also discussed the coordination of other measures, including possible new joint procurement, as “vaccines adapted to variants are coming soon,” the French presidency said.
Vaccines tailored to the new variant could be ready as early as March, but the EU medicines regulator has said it is not yet clear whether they are needed.
Work is underway to develop multivalent vaccines that could protect against multiple variants, but it is not known when or if they might be available.
“It is clear that priority needs to be given to a new generation of vaccines that are effective against several variants and ideally protect against infection,” Kyriakides told the ministers.
Source From: Ambito
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