The Spanish government authorises third dose for over-60s

MadridThe Spanish President, Pedro Sánchez, announced on Wednesday that the Vaccines Committee has authorised a third dose of the vaccine against coronavirus to be given to the over-60s and also to all health and social care workers. The decision comes a few weeks after the Spanish government authorised the booster for the over-70s. In Catalonia, according to data from the Department of Health, 364,341 third doses have already been administered.

Pedro Sánchez has made this announcement from Turkey, where on Wednesday he met with the country's president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. After the Vaccines Committee's approval, it will be the Public Health Commission, formed by representatives of the autonomous communities and the Ministry of Health, will decide on its implementation. "We must move forward in the protection of these groups. It is essential to continue with a vaccination strategy that has been successful in our country," Sánchez said, who highlighted "the example" that Spanish citizens have set in this regard.

In mid-September, the state executive authorised a third dose to be administered to residents in nursing homes and, a few days earlier, had approved it for people with severe immunosuppression. At the beginning of October, the Spanish government extended this booster dose to people over 70. In Catalonia, this group began to receive the third shot on the week of 25 October and the Department of Health administered it at the same time as influenza vaccines.

For the moment, the Spanish president has not given details about when and how this third dose will be administered for the over-60s. In the case of the over-70s, the Public Health Commission established that all those who had received the full vaccination schedule (two doses) could receive the booster provided that six months had passed since the second jab was administered.