COVID Booster Shots In India: Get your Jab now, just check criteria
Highlights
COVID Cases surge in India
Booster shots began in India
How to register and who all will get it?
Last month, on December 25, 2021, Prime Minister made an announcement to administer booster or third dose of Covid-19 vaccination to all frontline, healthcare workers and people above 60 years of age. 5.79 crore people are eligible for the Covid booster shots. They will start getting jabbed from 10th of January i.e. today. No online registrations will be required, the eligible who have already taken two doses of covid vaccination can walk into the vaccination centers to get their shot. There should be a gap of nine months between the second those and the booster , the precautionary can also be taken by people above 60 years of age with comorbidities like diabetes, hypertension etc. Notably, they have to consult their doctor. The booster dose will be the same vaccine people received as their first and second dose against COVID-19 infection, not a mix and match.
Why is there a need for booster dose?
India on Monday reported 1,79,723 new Covid cases that took the total tally to 3.57 crore cases. The active cases are now 7,23,619 according to the Union Health Ministry data. With omicron cases rising , 23 states of India has reported cases so far. In fact, people who had got both the shots have also tested positive. Many reported some severe cases as well.
The booster shot is majorly to mitigate the severity of infections, hospitalization and death as said by the Director General of Indian Council of Medical Research. COVID-19 boosters offer potent protection against omicron, study says recommending Pfizer and Moderna as stated by USA TODAY.
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Booster dose creates substantially higher antibodies as compared to the vaccination amid omicron infections, With an Mrna vaccine booster offering the best protection against the fast spreading variant. Omicron showed traits of getting past vaccine created immunity, affecting the people who are even double vaccinated but have milder symptoms as compared to those who are unvaccinated. The initial vaccination helped create a long term immunity the researchers found. A 2020 research study has shown that unvaccinated people are at five times greater risk of getting infected than 10 times greater risk of hospitalization or death from COVID-19 than those who are fully vaccinated.
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How do they work?
Through a process called antibody affinity maturation, our immune system Is made to realize the pathogen into making antibodies that bind more tightly to protect themselves. The booster dose tricks the immune system into thinking that a foreign body has again entered the system, and the immune cells are recalled to act upon it and so that the quantity of antibodies can be increased and affinity matured antibodies can be more effective and cautious. Therefore, while the contents of the jab remain the same for the immune system the protection we are left with after the third dose is bigger broader and more protective than that we had before.
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A study headed by United Kingdom said that booster vaccination can provide up to 88% protection against hospitalization from omicron. UK health Security Agency analysis showed that around three months after the booster the protection against hospitalization in above 65 years of age remains at 90% affecting the same with only mild symptoms.
The World Health Organization booster doses are administered to a vaccinated population that has completed its primary vaccination process, Germany, Austria, Canada and France are among the first few countries who began administering the booster shots. United States of America started their booster dose administration in August of 2021 And completed 1,24, 72,219 booster doses in just 2 months till the end of October.
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