Israeli clinics were inviting Israelis under 40 to be vaccinated with a third dose of the coronavirus vaccine on Friday, ahead of an expected decision to expand the booster program.
The health ministry announced on Thursday that a government advisory panel of health experts had recommended opening a third vaccination dosing program to all Israelis 40 years of age and older, reducing the age eligibility requirement by 10 years because The country seeks to combat the highly contagious Delta variant. coronavirus.
Health ministry director Nachman Shai should still sign off on the recommendation, but with him widely expected to do so, health maintenance organizations didn’t wait to open up vaccine appointments to a larger group on Friday morning.
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, 49, also couldn’t wait for Aish to recover, with his office announcing Thursday night that he would be vaccinated the next morning.
“I call on everyone who meets the criteria set by the committee – get vaccinated,” Bennett said in a statement. “Let us take responsibility for everyone’s health and livelihood. This is not the time to gamble with life.”
The program has already been watched by more than 1 million people over the age of 50, with immunologists and healthcare workers receiving their third dose of the shot.
The experts also recommended a third vaccine dose, regardless of age, to pregnant women, teachers, additional health workers, nursing home staff and welfare programs, inmates and prison guards. It also supports boosters for Israelis who are overweight or diabetic.
The websites of Israel’s four health funds invited anyone over the age of 40 to schedule an appointment for a vaccine, as well as some youth healthcare workers and in geriatric facilities, but did not mention other recommended groups. .
Example: Teachers clean the classroom at a daycare center in Modin on May 7, 2020. (Yosie Zeliger/Flash90)
Only those who received a second vaccine dose at least five months ago were eligible for the shot.
The Walla news site reported that some clinics had already started vaccinating those in the 40-49 range who were overnight.
“Once I heard that vaccinations were being opened to those 40 and older, I went to the Mehedet clinic without an appointment and hoped for the best, and in fact they agreed to give me the shot on the spot. happened,” Ramat Hasharon man Lior Sion, 44, told the site.
The expert panel considered expanding the coverage of boosters to all those who had two doses of the vaccine. However, that proposal was not ultimately approved.
The Ynet news site reported that Ash still opposes the expansion of vaccination to entire groups of individuals who are already vaccinated.
Nachman Aish, Director-General of the Ministry of Health, speaks in his office in Jerusalem on July 13, 2021. (Flash90)
US health officials announced Wednesday that a third dose would be offered to anyone over the age of 18 from September 20, fueling speculation that the program would be significantly expanded.
Last month, Israel became the first country in the world to begin offering booster shots to people over the age of 60, and last week, expanded eligibility to those over 50. With Ash’s recovery, it will also become the first country to expand. Program for people over 40.
So far 1,260,736 Israelis have received the third dose, according to health ministry data on Thursday.
Israel has seen case numbers skyrocket in recent weeks due to the delta variant. On Wednesday, more than 7,900 new cases were reported and 599 people were hospitalized with the disease in serious condition. A total of 6,752 people have died since the virus outbreak started last year.
Health officials expect the number to rise even higher and have warned the government that during September, at current rates, the number of patients needing hospital treatment will reach 5,000, half of whom will be in critical condition.
Channel 12 reported on Thursday evening that officials from an Israeli government panel assessed that without a third shot, around 100 vaccinated individuals aged 40-49 would experience severe COVID illness in the next 30 days.
Medical staff receive the third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine in Jerusalem on August 17, 2021. (Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90)
Those vaccinated with a booster shot were six to eight times less likely to have a severe case of the disease and four times less likely to become infected than those who received two doses, according to health panel experts cited by the network. .
According to the former health ministry director-general, experts also believe that the delta version is not able to circumvent the Pfizer vaccine specifically used in Israel, but it is only the effect of previous shots that people vaccinated against. making sick. Gabby Barabash.
The booster’s ability to once again protect the majority of the population from Delta once administered is proof of this, he told Channel 12.
Bennett’s government has resisted calls for stricter restrictions or lockdowns to reduce infection rates, insisting that the socioeconomic damage it would cause would be enormous. The administration has described vaccines as a healthy way to prevent the spread of the virus.
