Uruguay approves third dose of Pfizer vaccine for people over 60 years of age

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Uruguay approved on Wednesday (8) the administration of the third dose of Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine to people aged 60 years or older who have completed the immunization regimen with this vaccine or the Anglo-Swedish AstraZeneca vaccine.

This was announced by the country’s Ministry of Public Health (MSP) in a communiqué. It clarified that the decision was taken under the protection of an analysis of the National Vaccine Advisory Commission and an “ad hoc” scientific group.

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According to the Ministry, the inoculation with the booster dose, subject to a schedule whose opening has not yet been announced, must take place six months after the last dose.

The MSP also insisted on “the need to maintain and promote non-pharmacological prevention measures,” i.e., the use of masks, hand hygiene, adequate ventilation, and social distancing to avoid further transmission of the virus.

It also pointed out that it is recommended to prioritize the vaccination of people who have not yet received any doses of the Covid-19 vaccine.

On July 28, the Uruguayan government had approved the administration of a third dose of the US Pfizer vaccine to those who had completed the immunization regimen against Covid-19 with the Chinese vaccine Coronavac.

According to the CoronavirusUy application, developed by the MSP, up to Wednesday afternoon, 613,620 people were inoculated with this booster dose.

While 2,533,846 people (71.52% of the population) have received two doses from the Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinovac, the Anglo-Swedish company AstraZeneca or the American company Pfizer, 162,136 people have received only the first dose, and 1,920,226 people with two doses have not received any booster.

Since the beginning of the crisis, Uruguay has had 385,926 cases of Covid-19, of which 1,477 are people currently suffering from the disease, 15 of them in intensive treatment centers.