Booster doses halt or minimize spread, prevent mutant variant: GMOA

By administering a booster dose, it will halt or minimize the spread of the disease and prevent further mutation, thereby preventing a mutant variant, the Government Medical Officers' Association today said.

They said it is essential to go for a third dose of vaccine as a booster. If a booster is to be administered, a plan of action must be set in place identifying a timeline, the initial categories to be administered through a methodology, they said. 

For that, a minimum of 15 million doses of vaccines are required to a third dose rollout when a virus is actively circulated within a population and infecting a large number of individuals, the likelihood of the virus mutating increases, the GMOA said.

They also said that administering the vaccine for the 12-18 age group must also be actively explored at this juncture. 

In order to mitigate the spread, and with the idea of looking towards the future, the concept of a third dose of vaccine being administered has been accepted globally, they said. 

Therefore, it is essential to identify and plan for a booster vaccination with a technically accepted vaccine type.

As there is no definitive expiration date for COVID-19, it is imperative that a way forward is set in place, especially in terms of vaccination. 

Several nations have now commenced or are planning to commence a booster dose of the vaccination for COVID-19 with accepted vaccine types. Countries such as Britain, France, Russia, Israel, Germany and Indonesia are amongst these nations, the GMOA added. (Chaturanga Samarawickrama)