With more than 1,200 COVID-19 cases in residential care as of last Friday, an academic has called on the Department of Health and Aged Care to deliver a fifth jab against the virus alongside the annual influenza vaccination.
“I think it’s pretty straightforward, to be honest. We’ve got winter coming. We’ve got waning immunity against Omicron. We’ve got vulnerable people who haven’t had a booster for six months and a minimum once a year booster is appropriate at the moment that could be delivered in April/May at the same time as flu jabs are being rolled out,” Professor Robert Booy, an infectious diseases paediatrician, at the University of Sydney told News Corp.
Most providers have ensured its residents have had four COVID-19 vaccinations.
COVID was Australia’s third leading cause of death (after heart disease and dementia) in 2022.
The Actuaries Institute reported there were 16,600 more deaths than predicted in the first 10 months of 2022 with more than half due to COVID, adding “there are very few weeks in 2022 when deaths over the age of 65 are not significantly higher than expected.”
Overseas, the UK vaccine advisory body wants an annual COVID booster dose for people at higher risk of severe COVID and twice yearly (in Autumn and Spring) COVID jabs for those who are older and those who are immunosuppressed. The US FDA is preparing for an annual booster dose that is updated to target the dominant variants of the virus circulating at a point in time.
The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI), which guides Government decision making on vaccinations, does not currently recommend a fifth dose except for people who are severely immunocompromised.
