WHO wants Covid boosters again for vulnerable groups

NEW DELHI: The World Health Organisation's Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunisation (SAGE) has recommended an additional booster of Covid either 6 or 12 months after the last dose for the high priority group.
This includes adults as well as young adults with significant comorbidities; and people with immune-compromising conditions and frontline health workers, among others. The WHO guideline says these people remain at high risk of developing severe disease if they are infected with Covid.
For those at medium risk of developing severe disease - younger adults without comorbidities and adolescents with comorbidities - the latest WHO guideline recommends only the primary series and the first booster dose. "Although additional boosters are safe for this group, SAGE does not routinely recommend them, given the low public health returns," the guideline says.
Healthy children and adolescents aged 6 months to 17 years fall in the low priority group.