Wider access to booster took too long – experts
Wider access to the second Covid19 booster for Mā ori and Pasifika aged 40 to 49 should have been granted earlier, experts say.
The Government announced on Wednesday it would be lowering the age of eligibility for the second booster from 50 to 40 for Māori and Pasifika in the first Covid-19-related press briefing since September.
The risk of death from Covid-19 for Mā ori and Pasifika is around twice that of the general population.
Te Kōhao Health managing director Lady Tureiti Moxon said the second booster should have been made available much earlier for these groups.
‘‘But the one good thing about this is that there is a recognition. It’s taken the Government a very long time to recognise that Mā ori, in particular, are much more vulnerable than other groups in our society,’’ she said. ‘‘It’s really important that they speak with Māori so that we can actually work together to co-design what needs to happen. That was one of the biggest criticisms of the Covid response in those early days.’’
University of Auckland associate dean Pacific Sir Collin Tukuitonga agrees Māori and Pasifika over 40s should have had access to the second booster earlier.
‘‘But better late than never. Should have continued masks for high risk groups plus better effort to lift boosters,’’ he said. ‘‘It’s a good move given sluggish response to boosters, but given high number of cases continuing, it’s sensible, might lift uptake.’’
Ministry of Health chief science adviser Dr Ian Town said a decision on any health intervention is based on a careful consideration of the risks and benefits for an individual or for a specific group.
‘‘Key steps were the development of this expert advice through the Covid-19 vaccine technical advisory group (CVTAG),’’ he said. ‘‘That analysis was informed by a recent review of deaths and even more recent hospitalisation data from Covid-19 in the first six months of the year.’’ Town said as a result of this analysis, CVTAG made the recommendation to extend the eligibility of the Covid-19 second booster for Māori and Pacific people aged 40-49 in a paper to the director-general earlier this month.