COVID-19 : More experiments needed to assess impact of booster doses, says INSACOG

(Representative image)

As more cases of the new Variant of Concern (VoC) Omicron get detected across the country and world, discussions have been happening around the need for booster doses for vaccines. At present India's COVID-19 vaccination programme does not entail any booster dose of the vaccines.

However, a few days after INSACOG- the country's top genome sequencing laboratories- spoke about a booster dose for certain sections of the population, they have now said that their recommendation was not for the national immunisation programme as many more scientific experiments are required to assess its impact.

In its bulletin issued on December 4, the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Consortium on Genomics (INSACOG) said the mention of the booster dose in its previous bulletin was merely a discussion about the potential role of an additional dose of Covid-19 vaccines in high-risk populations.

"Many more scientific experiments are needed to assess the impacts of booster dose, which are being guided and monitored by National Technical Advisory Group on Immunization (NTAGI) and National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for COVID-19 (NEGVAC), said the INSACOG bulletin dated December 4.

In its bulletin dated November 29, the INSACOG had said vaccination of all remaining unvaccinated at-risk people and consideration of a booster dose for those 40 years of age and over, first targeting the most high-risk / high-exposure may be considered.

It also clarified that any recommendation or suggestion regarding vaccines, their schedule and roll-out come under the mandate of  NTAGI and NEGVAC.

Meanwhile, in the ongoing Winter Session of the Parliament, Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya apprised the Lok Sabha that at the moment the focus of the vaccination drive is to expand the coverage of the second dose. Any decision of booster doses and vaccines for kids would be taken after scientific advice.

During the debate in the Lok Sabha on the Covid pandemic, several lawmakers had suggested a booster dose of COVID-19 vaccines for the elderly, immunocompromised and healthworkers who work in high-risk environments.

NTAGI is likely to meet next week to assess whether there was adequate data on waning immunity, where the effects of the vaccine wear off over a period of time.