Reuters file photo for representation.
Geneva: The World Health Organization (WHO) announced today new recommendations regarding COVID-19 vaccinations at another stage of the pandemic noting that healthy children and adolescents may not necessarily need a vaccination dose, suggesting that high-risk populations should receive an additional dose of 6 to 12 months after their last booster.
The United Nations agency said in a statement that the aim is to focus efforts on vaccinating those who face a higher risk of serious illness and death from Covid-19, taking into account the high level of population immunity around the world due to the spread of infection and vaccination.
The health agency defined high-risk populations as older adults, as well as younger people with other significant risk factors. For this group, the agency recommends an additional shot of the vaccine either 6 or 12 months after the latest dose, based on factors such as age and immunocompromising conditions.
The WHO defined the group including healthy children and adolescents as "low priority" and urged countries to consider factors like disease burden before recommending vaccination of this group, stressing that vaccines against Covid-19 and booster doses are safe for all ages, but the recommendations took into account other factors such as cost-effectiveness.
WHO had said in September that the end of the pandemic was "on the horizon" but its recommendations today come at a time when countries of the world are taking different methods in dealing with the pandemic.
