SINGAPORE - Some countries are moving towards offering their citizens a second booster shoot, or a fourth dose of a Covid-19 vaccine, but there are no plans to do so in Singapore yet, said the Health Ministry's Director of Medical Services Kenneth Mak.
The authorities have looked at the available evidence on the protection offered by vaccines - including the initial two-dose regime and subsequent booster shots - as well as the rate of infection among those who are vaccinated, he told a press conference on Wednesday (Feb 16).
Prof Mak said that it is still premature to speculate about whether and when additional booster shots will be needed. He added that additional booster doses are not considered necessary at this time.
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"We still are in the midst of encouraging more people to complete the booster vaccinations as they become eligible and it will take a little bit more time before we come to a need to review that decision on whether to offer our public another booster," Associate Professor Mak said.
"At this time, we are also monitoring whether or not there will be an emergence of a new variant… These variants, based on their inherent characteristics, may require us to augment and enhance the protection that we currently have from vaccines and booster vaccination jabs."
Health Minister Ong Ye Kung noted that the question of whether further booster shots are necessary is still a matter of debate among scientists studying the coronavirus.
He said it may not be necessary to develop variant-specific vaccines if future variants continue to be like Omicron, which is more transmissible but less severe compared with previous variants of concern.
"If you go towards the direction of Delta, meaning that you get a new variant that is actually more virulent, more destructive, then you may have to look at variant-specific vaccination to protect against infection," he said.
"These are still questions that you have to answer, so as of now, we don't have active plans to administer a second booster."
This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.