Will Britain become the first country in the world to have a large section of its population immunised against Covid-19 three times over — and will that be a worthwhile achievement? The government is reportedly planning to give out booster shots — eventually to everyone over the age of 50 — starting as early as 6 September. This appears to be following the advice issued by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation on 30 June.
If the government tells us we all need an extra shot after so short an interval, might it undermine confidence in the vaccines?
The reasoning is that the benefits of immunisation wear off over time and that third shots would limit the damage from a further wave of Covid infection emerging this winter, possibly combined with a flu outbreak. Britain is not the only country considering booster shots. Israel has already begun administering them to people with compromised immune systems and late last week announced that it would extend them to everyone over the age of 60.
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