Health Ministry allows Covid vaccine booster shots for UN staff
The Health Ministry has allowed for United Nations staff in Uganda to be given booster doses as well as mixing of Covid vaccines for the same group of people.
In a December 21 response to the UN Resident Coordinator, the Director General of Health Services, Dr.Henry Mwebesa gave a greenlight to eligible UN staff to get booster doses.
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“I take note that it has been over six months since all the fully vaccinated UN personnel had the second dose of Covid vaccine. The ministry advises that it is now recommended to administer booster Covid vaccines to eligible personnel,” Mwebesa said.
Vaccine mixing
The Ministry of Health also guided the UN staff on how to mix the Covid vaccines as they get the booster shots.
According to the ministry, those who got AstraZeneca doses are free to get Pfizer or Moderna for the booster shots whereas those who got Pfizer are free to get AstraZeneca as booster shots.
On the other hand, the Ministry of Health says that UN staff who first got Moderna does are free to get AstraZeneca as booster shots, AstraZeneca or Pfizer or Moderna for those who first got Sinopharm Covid dozes and Sinovac whereas those who got Johnson and Johnson are free to get Pfizer or Moderna for a booster jab.
The development comes on the backdrop of a sharp rise in Covid cases in the past few weeks, courtesy of the new Covid variant, Omicron.
The latest test results from the Ministry of Health indicate that Uganda recorded 503 new Covid cases on December, 20.
Amid the growing concern over the Omicron variant of Covid, some members of the public have asked government to allow booster shots to those eligible in reaction to reports that Omicron spreads faster than its predecessor, Delta.
Reports also say the new variant is more likely to infect people who were vaccinated or had COVID in the past.
In some countries, the wait time for the Covid vaccine booster shots has been reduced from six months to as low as three months as a way of warding off the new surge in infections from Omicron variant.
The Minister for Health, Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng is set to address the country about the Covid situation and the issue of booster vaccine shots is expected to be addressed.
