The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) are now officially recommending a second booster dose for people between 60 and 79 years old and people at high risk of contracting severe Covid-19 due to medical conditions.
While both agencies already recommended a second booster for people over 80 in April 2022, they noted that such boosters should also be considered for people in younger age brackets "if there was a resurgence of infections."
As a new wave of infections spreads over Europe, the EMA and ECDC stressed that it is "critical" that public health authorities now also offer a new dose to people between 60 and 79, as well as vulnerable persons of any age.
The new dose should be administered at least four months after the previous one, focusing first on those who have received a booster more than six months ago.
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"Our Covid-19 vaccines work and offer good levels of protection against severe illness and hospitalisation. With cases and hospitalisations rising again as we enter the summer period, I urge everybody to get vaccinated and boosted as quickly as possible. There is no time to lose," said European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety Stella Kyriakides.
She called on Member States to immediately roll out second boosters for all vulnerable people and everyone over 60 years old. "This is how we protect ourselves, our loved ones and our vulnerable populations."
For Dr Andrea Ammon, the Director of ECDC, there are still too many people at risk of severe Covid-19 infection who need to be protected as soon as possible. "We need to remind people of the importance of vaccination from the very first shot to the second booster. We have to start today."
By giving a second booster dose to people over 60, the ECDC aims to avert a significant number of hospitalisations and deaths. "We have several safe and effective vaccines available, and every single Covid-19 infection prevented now is a potential life saved," said Ammon.
Second boosters in the wider population
At present, there is no clear evidence to support giving a second booster dose to people below 60 years old or healthcare workers who are not at higher risk of severe disease, according to the EMA and ECDC.
Both agencies are calling on public health authorities across the EU to plan for additional boosters during the autumn and winter seasons for people with the highest risk of severe disease, possibly combining Covid-19 vaccinations with those for influenza.
Last week, the Belgian health authorities announced that they would launch a new vaccination campaign in September for all people aged 50 and over. While the authorities acknowledged that there is currently not sufficient scientific evidence to give an additional booster to those aged 18 to 50, they will still be available on an individual basis.
