New Delhi: Starting Sunday, adults will be able to take the precautionary dose at private COVID-19 vaccination centres.
The health ministry on Friday announced that all those who are more than 18 years of age and have completed nine months after the administration of the second dose, would be eligible for the precaution dose.
This facility would be available in all private vaccination centres.
India started administering precaution doses to frontline workers, healthcare workers and those above the age of 60 years with comorbidities on January 10 this year. Later, on March 16, the vaccination drive for precaution dose was extended to all adults above the age of 60 years. Meanwhile, the third jab will not be free for most adults.
“It’s a welcome step. Enough cynical data to show that booster dose is helping people& protecting them from infection, re-infection & also if they got it the impact is very minor,” Dr N Trehan, Chairman, Medanta said.
The Health Ministry informed that so far, about 96% of all 15+ population in the country have received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose while about 83% of 15+ population has received both doses of the vaccine.
More than 2.4 crore precaution doses have also been administered to healthcare workers, frontline workers and those above 60 years of age.
A total of 45% of the 12 to 14 years age group have also received the first dose. They are being administered the Corbevax vaccine, which is manufactured by Biological E.
The ongoing free vaccination programme through government vaccination centres for the first and second dose to the eligible population as well as precaution dose to healthcare workers, frontline workers and those aged above 60 years would continue and would be accelerated, the ministry said.