Johnson & Johnson (J&J) or Janssen vaccines have been approved for the use as boosters by the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) on Thursday, for the protection against the Omicron variant. South Africa is the country where the new variant of COVID-19, Omicron was found last month, as per the official report of SAHPRA. Right now, South Africa has 33.5 lakh overall COVID cases.
The country had indicated in December that it was preparing to offer people booster doses of both the Pfizer and J&J shots but did not specify when the J&J boosters would be available. The SAHPRA announced on Thursday that it had cleared the J&J vaccine for use booster, which can be taken after at least two months after the original vaccination, with either J&J’s single-shot course or another licenced mRNA COVID-19 vaccine.
South Africa has depended mainly on the shots of the two companies
South Africa has depended mainly on two companies, J&J and Pfizer in its vaccination campaign. South Africa’s vaccination programme has received a significant boost before the end of the year as before J&J’s authorisation, SAHPRA authorised the Pfizer vaccine as a booster, according to Insider. Health officials believe that vaccines are crucial in the fight against COVID-19, as they lower hospitalizations and death. However, the immunity given by these vaccinations has been shown to decrease over time, particularly in the setting of new variants like Omicron. But it is believed that booster shots can protect from severe disease.
South Africans who have received two doses of the Pfizer vaccine will have to wait until at least March 2022 to get their J&J booster shot. SAHPRA announced that those who received two doses of the Pfizer vaccine must still wait at least six months for a J&J booster, according to Insider. The Department of Health is still deciding how and when the J&J boosters will be made available to the public, based on advice from the Ministerial Advisory Committee on Vaccines for COVID-19.
Pfizer booster stays homologous
According to Insider, although SAHPRA has ruled that a dose of J&J can be used as a booster for Pfizer, it is ultimately up to the Department of Health to decide if this heterologous technique will be employed in the booster deployment. In South Africa, a dosage of the J&J vaccination can be used to enhance the Pfizer vaccine, but the Pfizer booster stays homologous, meaning it cannot be used to boost a single dose of the J&J jab.
Johnson & Johnson (J&J) or Janssen vaccines have been approved for the use as boosters by the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) on Thursday, for the protection against the Omicron variant. South Africa is the country where the new variant of COVID-19, Omicron was found last month, as per the official report of SAHPRA. Right now, South Africa has 33.5 lakh overall COVID cases. The country had indicated in December that it was preparing to offer people booster doses of both the Pfizer and J&J shots but did not specify when the J&J boosters would be available. The SAHPRA announced on Thursday that it had cleared the J&J vaccine for use booster, which can be taken after at least two months after the original vaccination, with either J&J’s single-shot course or another licenced mRNA COVID-19 vaccine. South Africa has depended mainly on the shots of the two companies South Africa has depended mainly on two companies, J&J and Pfizer in its vaccination campaign. South Africa’s vaccination programme has received a significant boost before the end of the year as before J&J’s authorisation, SAHPRA authorised the Pfizer vaccine as a booster, according to Insider. Health officials believe that vaccines are crucial in the fight against COVID-19, as they lower hospitalizations and death. However, the immunity given by these vaccinations has been shown to decrease over time, particularly in the setting of new variants like Omicron. But it is believed that booster shots can protect from severe disease. South Africans who have received two doses of the Pfizer vaccine will have to wait until at least March 2022 to get their J&J booster shot. SAHPRA announced that those who received two doses of the Pfizer vaccine must still wait at least six months for a J&J booster, according to Insider. The Department of Health is still deciding how and when the J&J boosters will be made available to the public, based on advice from the Ministerial Advisory Committee on Vaccines for COVID-19. Pfizer booster stays homologous According to Insider, although SAHPRA has ruled that a dose of J&J can be used as a booster for Pfizer, it is ultimately up to the Department of Health to decide if this heterologous technique will be employed in the booster deployment. In South Africa, a dosage of the J&J vaccination can be used to enhance the Pfizer vaccine, but the Pfizer booster stays homologous, meaning it cannot be used to boost a single dose of the J&J jab.