World

WHO: SAGE Recommends An Additional Booster After Last Dose

The World Health Organization’s Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization (SAGE) changed its recommendations for COVID-19 vaccines on Tuesday, recommending that high-risk populations receive an additional dose 12 months after their last booster.

High-risk populations were defined by the health agency as older adults as well as younger people with other significant risk factors. Based on factors such as age and immunocompromising conditions, the agency recommends an additional dose of the vaccine 6 or 12 months after the most recent dose for this group.

The WHO categorized healthy children and adolescents as “low priority” and urged countries to consider factors such as disease burden before recommending vaccination for this group.

The recommendations come as different countries approach their populations in different ways. Some high-income countries, such as the United Kingdom and Canada, are already offering COVID-19 boosters to high-risk people this spring, six months after their last dose.

The WHO stated that this was an option for a subset of people who were particularly vulnerable, but its recommendations were intended as a global best practice guide.

The agency also stated that additional COVID booster vaccines beyond the initial series – two shots and a booster – were no longer routinely recommended for “medium risk” people.

Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE previously announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted emergency use authorization (EUA) to provide a single booster dose of the companies’ Omicron BA.4/BA.5-adapted bivalent COVID-19 vaccine in children 6 months through 4 years of age (also referred to as under 5 years of age) at least 2 months after completion of primary vaccination with three doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.

Also read: Conman Kiran Patel’s wife Apprehended In Ahmedabad

Spriha Rai

Recent Posts

India & Central Asia Boost Rare Earth Cooperation At Delhi Meet

India and five Central Asian nations have agreed to deepen cooperation on rare earths and…

13 mins ago

PM Modi’s Beej Se Bazaar Tak Vision Reshapes Indian Agriculture

Prime Minister Modi has redefined Indian agriculture with the ‘Beej Se Bazaar Tak’ vision, transforming…

37 mins ago

EV Sales Cross 4% Mark In May; Signalling Steady Shift To Green Mobility

EV sales topped 4% of passenger vehicle retail in May 2025, signalling growing demand for…

58 mins ago

Self-Reliant Defence Industry Marks India’s Strategic Security Ascent

One year into Modi 3.0, reforms have reduced poverty, strengthened defence, and accelerated the digital…

1 hour ago

Survey Shows Over 88% Indians Trust PM Modi On National Interest & Security

A recent News18 survey reveals that more than 88 per cent of Indians trust Prime…

2 hours ago

PM Modi: NDA Government Has Redefined Women-Led Development Over 11 Years

Marking 11 years of the NDA govt at the Centre, PM Modi stated that women-led…

2 hours ago