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Poland recommends COVID-19 booster shots for people over 50

21.09.2021 14:15
Poland's government on Tuesday recommended a booster dose of the COVID-19 vaccine for healthcare workers and people over 50.
Polands Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and Deputy Health Minister Waldemar Kraska hold a joint news conference in Warsaw on Tuesday.
Poland's Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and Deputy Health Minister Waldemar Kraska hold a joint news conference in Warsaw on Tuesday.Photo: PAP/Wojciech Olkuśnik

Deputy Health Minister Waldemar Kraska told reporters the booster shot would be administered at least six months after the second shot.

Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said the aim was "to give the best possible protection to those most at risk of severe disease."

Officials have previously recommended a third dose for people with compromised immune systems.

Poland has so far administered over 19.6 million first doses of COVID-19 vaccines, while more than 19.2 million people have been fully inoculated, health ministry data showed on Tuesday.

The tally includes two-dose vaccines from Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and AstraZeneca as well as Johnson & Johnson's one-shot vaccine.

Poland on Tuesday reported 711 new coronavirus infections and 15 more deaths related to COVID-19, bringing the country's total number of cases during the pandemic to 2,899,008 and fatalities to 75,503.

Officials have warned that the number of COVID-19 infections in the country could rise in the weeks ahead as the Delta variant of the coronavirus begins to spread more quickly.

Health Minister Adam Niedzielski said earlier this month that the daily number of new coronavirus infections in the country could reach 1,000 by the end of September and then rise to 5,000 by late October.

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Source: IAR, PAP, Reuters