By Martin Cole-
Australia is offering a fourth COVID-19 vaccine to everyone over 30, health authorities said on Thursday.
The government said it is recommending a fourth jab for over 50s—but also offering it to everyone over 30 despite benefits to the younger age group being unclear.
The recommendation by the top immunization advisory body is based on the recognition that younger people might want a winter booster dose, even though its impact for them “is uncertain but likely to be limited”.
The announcement is a shift from Australia’s previous recommendation of a fourth COVID shot only to people over 65 as well as to vulnerable groups, including those with weakened immune systems.
Australia’s Health Minister Mark Butler(pictured) told a news conference that hospital patients with the omicron variant had increased by nearly 3,000, from 1,000 to 3,900, with 140 in intensive care.
Australia this week dropped all vaccine certificate requirements for foreign visitors.
Australia had previously recommended a fourth COVID shot only to people over 65 as well as to vulnerable groups, including those with weakened immune systems.
As from 11 July, the eligibility will be widened to anyone over the age of 30. Atagi’s advice specifically recommends a fourth dose for people aged over 50, and extends eligibility to those 30-49, but the group notes “the benefit for people in this age group is less certain”.
“The interval recommended between a recent Sars-CoV-2 infection or the first booster dose and a winter booster dose is now three months,” Atagi said.
7.4 million Australians will now be eligible for an extra dose, under the revised recommendations.
“My message to everyone living in Australia aged 50 and over is to make sure you have the greatest protection against Covid-19 by having a fourth dose as soon as possible,” Butler said.
“If you are aged 30 to 49 and you want that extra protection, you can choose to get a fourth dose.” Butler warned spiking Covid case numbers nationwide are “going to continue to rise for some time yet”, with warnings of a third wave of the Omicron variant about to break. Covid hospital admissions are currently at their highest level since February, with Australia recording more than 39,000 cases and 59 deaths in the last 24 hours.
“Case numbers are rising, hospitalisations are up by several hundred just in the fortnight and most states governments and the federal government are projecting that that’s going to continue to rise for some time yet,” Butler said.
He said 5 million eligible Australians had not yet had their third dose, while 40% of people over 65 had not had the fourth dose they were eligible for. Atagi said current vaccination numbers for third doses were not high enough.
Atagi said in its statement that the fourth dose of vaccine would play “a limited but important role” in reducing case and hospital numbers.
“Atagi advises that other public health and social measures, in addition to vaccination, will have the greatest impact against the Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 surge in infections,” it said.
“This includes increased use of masks and increasing the use of antiviral treatment in people diagnosed with Covid-19, including in people aged 50 years and above.”
Butler said on Wednesday that expanding mask mandates would be “difficult to maintain” but recommended people wear face coverings in crowded or high-risk areas.
“The response to that from chief health officers and leaders of government has generally been not to reintroduce broad-based mask mandates in the third year of a pandemic but to call on people to think very carefully that, when they are indoors and not able to socially distance, to give very strong consideration to wearing a mask,” Butler said on Thursday.
“It will reduce the impact of transmission.”
State governments have ruled out reintroducing the type of mask rules seen during previous stages of the pandemic, but health authorities are encouraging voluntary mask use.
The shadow health minister, Anne Ruston, said the federal opposition backed the change.
The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners vice-president, Dr Bruce Willett, called it a “sensible decision”.
Willett said GPs were already struggling to keep up with demands of administering Covid jabs, flu vaccines and everyday care, and called on the new federal government to provide greater assistance to the sector.
“It would be disappointing to hear reports emerging again of insufficient communication with general practice or of doses not arriving on time or insufficient stock being delivered,” he said.