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The World Health Organization (WHO) was forceful in declaring that no country will end the COVID-19 pandemic with booster doses and that, contrary to what might be thought, revaccination campaigns could prolong the pandemic, rather than finish with her.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director general of the WHO, said this Wednesday during a press conference in Geneva, Switzerland, that “no country will be able to overcome the pandemic with booster vaccinations and these do not mean a green light to celebrate as we had foreseen ”.
“These indiscriminate reinforcement programs they could even prolong the pandemic rather than end it, by diverting the available doses to countries with high vaccination rates, thus giving the virus more possibilities to spread and mutate, “said Ghebreyesus.
According to data from the highest health organ in the world, currently around 20 percent of the applied doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, worldwide, are used for booster vaccination or additional doses.
This is creating a problem, as although the supply of vaccines around the world has increased, not evenly distributed. Lower income countries have had much less access and face irregular and unpredictable supply.
“It is important to remember that the vast majority of hospitalizations and deaths have been in unvaccinated people, who have not received a booster dose,” insisted the director general of the WHO.
The world and booster doses
According to the WHO, at least 126 countries around the world have already issued recommendations on booster or additional vaccination and more than 120 have started the implementation of revaccination campaigns.
Most of these countries are classified as high-income or upper-middle-income.
No low-income country has yet introduced a booster vaccination program.
The most frequently prioritized target populations for booster doses are older adults, healthcare personnel, and the immunosuppressed.
In several of these countries that are administering booster doses, the coverage rates for complete primary vaccination are below 30%.
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