82% below 60 yet to take booster dose

NEW DELHI: Nearly two months since all adults in Delhi were made eligible for a free-of-cost third shot of the Covid-19 vaccine, also known as a precautionary dose, data shows that nearly 82% of people between the ages of 18 and 60 have now missed taking their booster shot on time as on June 14.

According to data maintained by the city’s health department, seen by HT, as on June 14, of the 3,003,639 people in the age group of 18-60 years eligible for precaution doses, only 540,943, or 18%, have shown up at the vaccination centre to get their third shot.

To be sure, the trend in Delhi appears much in line (and are even better) than what it being experienced on the national level, where turnout for booster doses has been exceptionally low – prompting the Union government to launch schemes such as Har Dar Dastak 2.0 to combat the issue. At the national level, only 3.5% of all adults under 60 that are eligible for booster shots have so far been boosted, data shows.

Senior health ministry officials who did not wish to be identified said that booster administration in the 60+ age group in the city was around 50%, as this group was made eligible for precaution doses in January. Since this period happened to coincide with the Omicron wave, many appeared to have rushed to take the added protection, they explained.

Precautionary doses were made free for everyone over the age of 18 years in the national capital in the third week of April 21 -precautionary doses since launch were only free for those above 60 years of age, health care and frontline workers. The government considers precaution dose vaccination for 18-60 age group crucial as this cohort is among the most mobile population and thus has the highest chances of contracting and transmitting the virus, said the Delhi government official quoted above.

The Capital added 1,323 cases on Thursday, and has logged an average of 945 cases over the past week. Hospitals have, in that time, been relatively undisturbed, with over 98% of Delhi’s 9,582 Covid-19 hospital beds vacant, according to the health bulletin released on Thursday. The number of persons eligible for precaution doses is a dynamic number because every day more people become eligible. This is because the government has mandated that everyone become eligible for a third shot when a nine-month period elapses since their second shot of the vaccine.

State health officials said they fear that after a relatively mild Omicron wave in the city in January, people appear to have a “casual attitude” towards the pandemic. “It has been observed that people have become very casual towards coronavirus pandemic in the last four-five months. It may be due to Covid fatigue, or because people started believing that coronavirus is just like a common cold. People are no longer taking the disease seriously and thus they are casual about precaution doses,” said the official.

A district immunisation officer, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said during outreach programmes people have been telling healthcare workers that since they have taken two doses of the vaccine, they are “fully vaccinated” and thus safe from Covid. “There is a serious lack of awareness about the importance of precaution doses,” said the immunisation officer quoted above.

Several studied in India and abroad have shown that the protection offered by vaccines against severe outcomes of Covid-19 begin waning around the six-to-eightmonth mark from their second shot – necessitating the need for a third booster dose.

Dr Jugal Kishore, head of the department of community medicine at Safdarjung Hospital, said the antibodies developed after Covid vaccination is usually adequate to provide the beneficiary protection from severity and mortality for nine months after which the antibodies start becoming weak. “It is quite beneficial for people to have booster dose which will protect them from severity and mortality though they do not protect from infection. However, vaccine alone will not protect people from the disease, so hygiene, respiratory etiquettes, avoiding overcrowded places, good nutrition and Vit D and A levels, stress free life have better protective effects,” said Dr Kishore. A big uptick in the Covid positive cases has caused alarm in the health administration. LG VK Saxena and deputy CM Manish Sisodia have directed officials to ensure enhanced testing and focus on the test, track, treat and vaccinate strategy to contain the spread.