Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 18) — Amid calls for a COVID-19 vaccine booster, a health expert said authorities will have to address breakthrough infections first before deciding if another coronavirus shot is necessary.
“We think about breakthrough infections, and so someone is vaccinated. They get tested for some reason and that test comes back positive, they are surprised,” CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta said in an interview with CNN Philippines’ The Final Word.
“Should that be considered a vaccine failure or is that a vaccine success because if it was a failure then that means that person got the infection despite being vaccinated. On other hand, they may have gotten a lot sicker had they not been vaccinated. These are the sorts of issues that need to be addressed before determining boosters right now,” he added.
Gupta said currently available vaccines remain effective – even against the highly contagious Delta variant – in preventing severe illness, hospitalization, and death.
However, breakthrough infections among the vaccinated can still be expected.
READ: FDA: Only 0.001% of 9M fully vaccinated Filipinos had breakthrough infections
On Wednesday, US health officials issued a recommendation for Americans to receive their booster shot as an added protection against the feared Delta variant, which now accounts for about 99% of COVID-19 cases in the US.
“We are prepared to offer booster shots for all Americans beginning the week of September 20 and starting 8 months after an individual’s second dose,” the health officials said in a joint statement.
In the Philippines, there’s no clear decision yet on whether boosters will be offered in the future.
Local health experts have also pointed out that vaccines remain “highly effective” against the coronavirus.
READ: Gov’t urged to order boosters, vaccine shots for kids ASAP
On vaccinating kids aged 12 and below, Gupta said this may not happen soon in the US since experts still need to make sure about two things: the vaccines’ side effects as there are concerns they may cause heart inflammation, and the dosing, since children may require lower doses.
Vaccine experts in the Philippines earlier rejected the proposal to immunize children and teenagers due to the unstable global supply and lack of efficacy and safety data for this age group.
