The most vulnerable French people are once again invited to extend their arm. Immunocompromised people, people aged over 80, or even residents of nursing homes… This Tuesday, February 27, the Ministry of Health encouraged the most vulnerable to be injected with a new dose of vaccine against Covid-19, from Next April 15.
In an opinion issued on February 9, the High Authority of Health (HAS) said it was in favor of launching a new vaccination campaign against Covid-19 “from the spring”, targeted at “people aged 80 and over , as well as residents of EHPAD/USLD and immunocompromised people regardless of their age.”
Shorter immune protection
And for good reason, the immune protection of these individuals “decreases more rapidly over time”. The objective of this ultra-targeted campaign is to maintain a sufficient level of vaccine effectiveness in populations most at risk of developing serious forms. However, vaccination remains open to the entire population.
From April 15, it will be possible to be vaccinated in pharmacies, at home or at your doctor’s office. Furthermore, like the latest vaccination campaigns against Covid-19, it is a priori the messenger RNA vaccine from Pfizer/BioNTech which should be used by health professionals, according to information from our colleagues from Parisian.
Respect a period of three months between two injections
Whatever the age of the patient, the HAS recommends respecting a minimum period of three months from the last reminder. During the previous campaign launched last fall, health authorities indicated that it was necessary to let “at least six months pass between two doses, or since the last Covid-19 infection”.
It must be said that the target was much broader. It particularly concerned individuals aged over 65, or with comorbidity (chronic illness, obesity, etc.). Pregnant women were also among those encouraged to be vaccinated. As well as any person who is part of “their entourage” or who is in “regular contact with them”, including caregivers.
Demonstrated effectiveness
If the campaigns continue, it is partly because vaccination has largely demonstrated its effectiveness. According to a recent study published on February 6 in the scientific journal Epidemics, vaccines are estimated to have saved the lives of some 160,000 people and prevented nearly 1.48 million hospitalizations. This is twice as many victims as the pandemic, which caused 116,000 deaths and 460,000 hospitalizations.
In addition, the study indicates that if the vaccines had been available after a hundred days – a wish expressed by the Coalition for Innovations in Epidemic Preparedness (Cepi, resulting from the Davos Forum) – almost a third deaths (71,000) and three quarters of hospitalizations (384,000) could have been avoided. “This result emphasizes the importance of rapid and early deployment of vaccines,” further declares Professor Rodolphe Thiébaut, who calls for a vaccine development strategy in order to anticipate future pandemics. In mid-January, the WHO estimated that anti-Covid vaccines had saved at least 1.4 million lives in Europe.