HYDERABAD: The State Health Department is all set to commence the administration of precautionary doses of the Covid-19 vaccine from Monday. On priority basis, the booster doses would be first provided to frontline workers, healthcare workers and people aged above 60 years with comorbidities. Beneficiaries can book their slots on the CoWIN portal, which began providing the said services on Saturday. It may be mentioned here that the Health Department has made it clear that only those who have completed nine months or 39 weeks after the second dose of vaccine would be eligible for taking the booster shot. Of the total 47.84 lakh eligible persons in the State, 41,50,000 are above the age of 60 years and the remaining 6,34,000 are frontline workers. Healthcare workers, who took their second dose in February and March 2021, are eligible to take a precautionary dose in January 2022.
Stick to the same vax
The Department has also urged the beneficiaries not to go for other vaccines. It has been stated that the precautionary dose must be of the same company administered as first and second doses. Precautionary doses for those above the age of 60 with comorbidities will be given as per the beneficiary’s willingness after consultation with their respective doctors. Around 20 per cent in the 60+ age group have comorbidities. The government and the health officials are now focused on motivating the beneficiaries to take a booster dose to keep the Omicron and Delta variants at bay. About 22,78,683 young adults in the State, belonging to the age group of 15-18 years, have already received their first doses of the vaccine.