Adar Poonawalla advises elderly to mask up, take Covovax booster as COVID cases rise

Adar Poonawalla, CEO, Serum Institute India (SII)

Adar Poonawalla recommended that the elderly in India should use masks and consider taking Covovax as a booster dose, as the number of active COVID-19 cases in the country reached a six-month high.

Poonawalla emphasised that the Omicron variant and its variants could be severe for the elderly, and he suggested that they take precautions by wearing masks and getting vaccinated with Covovax.

He also stated that Covovax is effective against all variants and has been approved in both the United States and Europe. The Covovax vaccine is now available on the COWIN app, according to Poonawalla.

As COVID cases have been rising again with Omicron XBB & its variants, it can be severe for the elderly. I’d suggest for the elderly, mask up & take the Covovax booster which is now available on the COWIN app. It is excellent against all variants & is approved in the US & Europe. pic.twitter.com/H8lmIzStUa

— Adar Poonawalla (@adarpoonawalla) April 11, 2023

The tweet from Serum Institute of India’s (SII) CEO came a day after the union health ministry approved the inclusion of Covovax on the CoWIN portal as a heterologous booster dose for adults.

The green signal from Health Ministry paves the way for Covovax to be administered in individuals who have previously received two doses of either Covishield or Covaxin.

Covovax, the second COVID vaccine from SII has the authorisation from World Health Organization (WHO) and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), USA.

According to an official from Health Ministry, Covovax, the vaccine by SII, will be available at ₹225 per dose and the GST would be applied to it. The vaccine is likely to be available on the Cowin portal in the coming few days.

The official didn’t comment on this vaccine’s availability in government hospital settings.

Prakash Kumar Singh, Director of Serum Institute of India (SII) on March 27 wrote to the health ministry requesting the inclusion of Covovax in the CoWIN portal as a heterologous booster dose for adults.

Covovax had been recommended by the COVID-19 Working Group, led by Dr. N.K. Arora, as a booster dose for adults who had already received two doses of either Covishield or Covaxin.

The market authorization for Covovax was granted by VG Somani, former Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI), on January 16.

As of today, India has recorded 5,676 new COVID cases, with the number of active cases increasing to 37,093, according to the Union Health Ministry's updated data. In the last 24 hours, 21 deaths were reported, bringing the COVID toll to 5,31,000. This surge in COVID cases is the highest since September last year.