BioNTech booster lasts a few months Who should get a double booster
Düsseldorf · A study shows that protection with the BioNTech booster decreases after a few months. What exactly does the study say? And what is the general vaccination situation in Germany and NRW?
The latest study on boosters brings new disillusionment: the high protection that citizens have against hospital admissions after a booster vaccination with the BioNTech vaccine diminishes after only a few months. This is the result of a study from California published in the journal "The Lancet Respiratory Medicine“.
■ What does the study say?
"Booster vaccinations with BioNTech significantly improve protection against Omikron, although this protection against emergency room visits and hospitalisation seems to decline after three months," the Deutsche Presse-Agentur quotes study author and epidemiologist Sara Tartof as saying. However, a certain effectiveness would remain. For the study, the researchers analysed more than 11,000 hospital admissions and visits to emergency rooms.
In the study period from December 2021 to February 2022, both the Delta and Omikron variants were in circulation. Other studies have already shown that the protection against infection decreases relatively quickly, especially with Omikron, because the antibody level drops. The situation is better with T cells, which are formed as the second part of the immune response. They destroy already infected cells and thus overcome the infection.
■ Who should get double vaccinations?
The Standing Commission on Vaccination (Stiko) currently recommends a second booster only for people over 70 or with pre-existing conditions, as well as for staff in clinics and homes. Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) has long recommended a booster for everyone over 60. In the vaccination centres in NRW, younger people can often also get a second booster if their first booster was at least three or six months ago. The municipalities take different approaches.
■ Will the recommendation be extended?
Experts from the Stiko and the Robert Koch Institute are still examining the data. It is possible that more people than before will be recommended a second booster. And it is possible that old people will even be advised to have a third booster. "At the moment, we can only speculate about a possible future date for a fourth and possibly even a fifth vaccination for certain population groups," explained the spokesperson for the Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (KV) North Rhine. "In principle, however, it is quite likely that with a view to the coming autumn, booster vaccinations will also be recommended by the Stiko for other population groups." This will depend on any virus variants, infection figures and the availability of adapted vaccines, the KV spokesman said.
■ When will the adapted vaccine be available?
Probably not until autumn, although BioNTech had initially raised other expectations. Moderna was immediately more sceptical. The manufacturers are also testing bivalent vaccines that work against Omikron and Delta. If the tests of a vaccine adapted to Omikron went well and approval was granted, the drug would be ready for use in autumn, the federal government recently announced.
■ What will happen to the vaccination centres in NRW?
In 2021, the then Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn (CDU) made the mistake of closing the vaccination centres. This is not to be repeated. In NRW, the vaccination centres are initially to remain until the end of August, after which they are likely to continue. The federal government has promised to cover half of the costs until the end of the year. "The Coordinating Covid Vaccination Units (Kocis) set up by the districts and independent cities are to be continued until 31 August 2022," says a decree of the NRW Ministry of Health.
Original text: Antje Höning
Translation: Mareike Graepel
