Governor João Doria (PSDB), who promoted vaccination as a way to differentiate himself from the federal government in his pre-campaign for the Presidency, announced that São Paulo will administer the fourth dose of immunization against Covid.
He did not give a date, but ruled out an imminent start.The state, following the national schedule, offers the first booster (or third dose) to adults and the first dose to children aged 5 to 11 years.
However, about 2 million people from São Paulo have not completed the vaccination schedule, according to Secretary Jean Gorinchteyn (Health), and completing it is a priority given the rapid spread of the omicron variant.
The Ministry of Health said in a technical note earlier this week that there is still not enough data to support the need for the fourth dose. The current recommendation is that only immunocompromised patients receive it.
Specialists such as the director of the São Paulo Society of Infectious Diseases, Evaldo Affonso de Araújo, cite doubts about the widespread use of yet another booster. For now, only Chile and Israel have adopted it.
Translated by Kiratiana Freelon