Germany prepares position on fourth COVID-19 shot

Berlin, Feb 03: Germany's expert vaccine commission, STIKO, is preparing a recommendation on whether to administer a fourth dose of COVID-19 vaccine, committee head Thomas Mertens said in comments published Thursday.

"The latest data from Israel shows that a fourth dose can provide a slight improvement in protection against infection and a notable protection from a serious case of illness," Mertens told German newspapers under the umbrella of the Funke Media Group publisher. "The STIKO will make a recommendation on this soon."

The fourth booster jab would be a vaccine that Germany already has on hand, according to Mertens.

Several pharmaceutical companies, such as Moderna and Germany's BioNTech, have said they will make a new shot that is more effective against the omicron variant of the virus. Mertens said the STIKO was awaiting clinical data from these companies on the new omicron-adapted vaccines.

In January, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said a fourth COVID-19 shot would be made available to medical workers, along with people aged 60 and older. Hundreds of thousands of people in the Mediterranean country have already received a fourth jab so far, although one Israeli study suggested another shot might be less effective against omicron.

Is a fourth shot necessary yet in Germany?

It's unclear, however, whether such an approach will work in Germany, where vaccine hesitancy remains strong. So far, around 74% of Germans are vaccinated at least twice, a figure lower than other European countries, such as France and Spain. Various politicians, including Health Minister Karl Lauterbach, have repeatedly said the main priority is to improve that quota.

German lawmakers are discussingmaking COVID vaccination obligatory to fight the pandemic, but it's unclear whether the idea will become public policy. Cases have surged in recent weeks, with Germany reporting a record 236,120 new infections on Thursday.

Beyond that, Germany's vaccination cycle began considerably later than Israel's, meaning most people who have so far received three shots would have likely had their initial "booster" later than a typical Israeli.

The Greens' health policy expert, Janosch Dahmen, told Funke newspapers that a fourth dose would probably be advisable for people with preexisting immune system concerns or who rely on medication that can compromise their immune system. But he said for many Germans it could also prove unnecessary, at least at present.

"The vast majority of people in Germany who have received a booster vaccination did so in December or January. Their immune protection against serious bouts of COVID is currently very good," Dahmen said.

Global health authorities, such as the World Health Organization (WHO), have condemned the use of booster shots by wealthy countries. The WHO has said the booster approach is contributing to global vaccine inequity, particularly in Africa.

Source: DW