From today onwards, all adults in the country are eligible to get booster vaccine doses against Covid-19, the Central government had announced earlier this week.
Precaution dose of COVID-19 vaccines will be available to all aged above 18 years at private vaccination centres from April 10, the Union Health Ministry announced on Friday.
All those above the age of 18 who have completed nine months after the administration of the second dose will be eligible for the precaution dose, it said.
"It has been decided that the precaution dose of Covid vaccines will be made available to the 18-plus population group at private vaccination centres. This facility would be available at all private vaccination centres," the ministry said.
"Adding an extra layer of safety! precaution dose to be available to 18+ age group from 10th April, 2022, at private vaccination centres. All 18+ who have completed nine months after administration of second dose would be eligible for precaution dose," Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said on Twitter.
All you need to know about the booster dose:
Booster doses are shots given to an already vaccinated individual when, with time, the immunity and clinical protection level has fallen below a rate deemed sufficient in that population, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). The objective of a booster dose is to restore vaccine effectiveness from that which is no longer sufficient.
Price:
The ongoing free COVID-19 inoculation programme through government vaccination centres for the first and the second dose to the eligible population as well as the precaution dose to healthcare workers, frontline workers and those above 60 years will be accelerated, the Union Health Ministry stated.
Vaccine majors Serum Institute of India (SII) and Bharat Biotech on Saturday said they have decided to cut prices of the precaution dose of their respective COVID-19 vaccines to Rs 225 per shot for private hospitals after discussion with the government. Earlier, the cost was Rs 600 and Rs 1,200 per dose respectively.
The Centre on Saturday told the states that the precaution dose will be of the same COVID-19 vaccine like the one used for the administration of the first two doses and that private vaccination centres can charge up to a maximum of Rs 150 per dose as a service charge over and above the cost of the vaccine.
Eligibility
The Centre said on Friday in a statement that all those who are more than 18 years of age & have completed 9 months after the administration of second dose, would be eligible for the precaution dose.
How to book
Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan on Saturday held a meeting of all Health Secretaries of States and Union Territories regarding precaution dose for the 18-59 age group.
"No fresh registrations would be required for precaution dose as all due beneficiaries are already registered on CoWIN," he said in an official statement.
Bhushan also emphasized mandatorily recording all vaccinations on the CoWIN platform and both the options of "online appointment" and "walk-in" registration and vaccination will be available at the private COVID vaccination centres (CVCs).
The private CVCs have to maintain the vaccination sites as per the operational guidelines issued by the Ministry earlier.
(With inputs from Agencies)
