Cape Town - The Department of Health has announced a reduction in the waiting period between the first and second dozes of the Pfizer vaccine from 42 to 21 days.
The health authorities have also indicated that those who have had the J&J vaccine as a primary dose can now choose between Pfizer or J&J for their booster shot, 60 days from receiving the first jab.
They have also suggested that those who received two doses of Pfizer can now choose between Pfizer or J & J as their booster jab, 90 days after receiving the second dose of Pfizer.
“This is good news for the vaccination programme as it means more people can now complete their primary schedule of Pfizer doses earlier, resulting in them being sufficiently protected against severe disease. In addition to the interval change of the Pfizer doses, the interval period for booster doses for the Pfizer vaccine has also been reduced,” the health department said.
“From Monday if you had the J&J dose as a primary dose, you can now choose between the Pfizer or J&J booster dose from 60 days after getting your first J&J vaccine.
“Similarly, from Wednesday, if you have had two Pfizer doses you can now choose either the Pfizer or J&J booster dose from 90 days after getting your second Pfizer dose.”
The department said the vaccines would be administered on availability on site and urged the public to familiarise themselves with vaccination sites.
“The decision as to which vaccine to administer as a booster will be guided by vaccine availability at vaccination sites. If both vaccines are available, the original (primary) boosting vaccine should be preferred,” the department said.
Meanwhile, the National Institutes of Communicable Disease (NICD) said 137 people had died in the past 24 to 48 hours with 1 151 new cases with a 7.4 positivity rate.
Weekend Argus