COVID-19 Reminder Campaign Open to All

While the incidence rate has been rising sharply since the end of November and the 9^e The wave of the Covid-19 epidemic is progressing in France, the Minister of Health and Prevention strongly recommends the vaccination booster and particularly to the most vulnerable people. The Minister clarified that the booster campaign is open to all and that the condition to receive the booster depends on the length of time since the last injection and not on the number of booster doses already received.

Who is involved?

Those eligible for a new dose of COVID-19 vaccine are:

• persons over 60 years of age;
• residents of Ehpad and long-term care (LTCF) units;
• people at risk of severe disease (immunocompromised, pregnant women, people under 60 with “comorbidity”);
• persons living in close contacts or in regular contact with immunocompromised or vulnerable persons;
• health and medical and social care professionals.

Booster vaccination is also open to anyone who wishes, provided they follow the vaccination schedule.

When to do this booster dose?

A booster dose, regardless of the number of doses received previously, may be given:

• as early as 3 months after the last injection for people aged 80 years and older, residents in Ehpad or USLD, and immunocompromised people;
• as early as 6 months after the last injection for other people.

In case of a recent COVID-19 infection, a delay of 3 months between the infection and the booster dose should be expected.

Indeed, the duration of protection against severe forms decreases over time; after 6 months, “the decrease is significant enough to require a booster,” recalls the infectious disease specialist Anne-Claude Crémieux.

Where to get vaccinated?

The booster dose can be given to your doctor, pharmacist, nurse or available vaccination centers.

Find a vaccination site near you and make an appointment.

What are the new vaccines?

The High Health Authority recommends that preference be given to bivalent vaccines adapted to Omicron variants (all mRNA) for this booster campaign.

Three bivalent vaccines have received validation from the European Medicines Agency: two from Pfizer/BioNTech and one from Moderna. The HAS states that “these are not new vaccines but vaccines adapted to circulating strains”, like the seasonal influenza vaccines that are updated each year according to the viruses most likely to circulate during the winter. The Moderna and Pfizer vaccines target the BA.1 variant of Omicron, in addition to the original strain, and the second Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine is suitable for BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants.

On December 8, 2022, the High Authority for Health issues an opinion in favor of recall use the new Sanofi/GSK VidPrevtyn® Beta vaccine and Novavax Nuvaxovid® vaccine in adults.