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Israel starts administering third dose of Pfizer vaccine to at-risk adults
Source: Washington Post
Israel starts administering third dose of Pfizer vaccine to at-risk adults
By Shira Rubin
July 12, 2021|Updated today at 1:29 p.m. EDT
TEL AVIV — Israel’s Ministry of Health on Monday began offering a third dose of the Pfizer vaccine to severely immunocompromised adults in what health experts say could be the first phase of an experiment to provide coronavirus booster shots for older people and the most vulnerable.
The recommendation, published Sunday by the ministry, said that the goal of the new program was to raise antibody levels among immunocompromised citizens, including cancer patients, recipients of liver transplants, and others whom data show have recently exhibited weakened vaccine protection. It said that it had still not made a decision on administering third shots for the general adult population.
The decision comes as Israel, which was among the fastest to vaccinate in the winter and then among the first to begin reopening in the spring, is experiencing a surge in new cases, spurred by the prevalence of the highly transmissible delta variant first identified in India. Over the past month, infection rates in Israel have spiked from single digits to more than 400 a day.
Just weeks after lifting most covid restrictions, the government has reinstated the mask mandate for indoor spaces and public transportation. It is expected to introduce stricter quarantines for travelers returning from abroad, rapid testing stations for students, and the recently retired “green pass” system granting vaccinated people broader access to mass public events like concerts and movie theaters.
-snip-
By Shira Rubin
July 12, 2021|Updated today at 1:29 p.m. EDT
TEL AVIV — Israel’s Ministry of Health on Monday began offering a third dose of the Pfizer vaccine to severely immunocompromised adults in what health experts say could be the first phase of an experiment to provide coronavirus booster shots for older people and the most vulnerable.
The recommendation, published Sunday by the ministry, said that the goal of the new program was to raise antibody levels among immunocompromised citizens, including cancer patients, recipients of liver transplants, and others whom data show have recently exhibited weakened vaccine protection. It said that it had still not made a decision on administering third shots for the general adult population.
The decision comes as Israel, which was among the fastest to vaccinate in the winter and then among the first to begin reopening in the spring, is experiencing a surge in new cases, spurred by the prevalence of the highly transmissible delta variant first identified in India. Over the past month, infection rates in Israel have spiked from single digits to more than 400 a day.
Just weeks after lifting most covid restrictions, the government has reinstated the mask mandate for indoor spaces and public transportation. It is expected to introduce stricter quarantines for travelers returning from abroad, rapid testing stations for students, and the recently retired “green pass” system granting vaccinated people broader access to mass public events like concerts and movie theaters.
-snip-
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/israel-vaccine-pfizer-booster/2021/07/12/ce5ceed4-e30e-11eb-88c5-4fd6382c47cb_story.html