Boosters help fight COVID-19, experts say. But are they the pathway out of the pandemic?
Global News
As Ontario broadens its COVID-19 booster eligibility to those aged 50 and up, experts say the threat of the Omicron variant is unclear — and that poorer nations need these doses.
As provinces expand their COVID-19 booster eligibility to respond to the Omicron variant, experts are warning Canada not to lose sight of the long-term pathway out of the pandemic: global vaccination efforts.
Ontario announced on Thursday that, come mid-December, boosters will be available to Canadians aged 50 and up, roughly six months after their second dose. But according to a World Health Organization advisor, we don’t actually know if boosters are even necessary as of yet.
“We don’t know at this point whether Omicron will affect the efficacy of vaccines, but we will find out soon and we’re working on those answers,” Dr. Peter Singer said in an interview with Global News.
“This is a bit like the fog of war. The early reports are not necessarily reliable or accurate. So the best thing we can do is be patient and be prudent.”
Meanwhile, Singer said, there were 48,000 COVID-19 deaths reported around the world last week — and the actual death rate might be “two to three times as high.”
“The priority really should be on primary doses for people at highest risk who are the most vulnerable in every country in the world,” Singer said.
But as Singer and other experts call on rich countries to share their vaccine stockpiles, Western countries are reckoning with studies that indicate the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines might begin to wane after six months.
That’s a deadline more than 10 million Canadians will reach by the new year.