Malta Moves Booster COVID-19 Vaccine Campaign Forward After Two Clusters In Elderly Care Homes
Malta will start administering COVID-19 booster doses for elderly care home residents next Monday, bringing the date forward by a week after finding two virus clusters in elderly care homes.
Health Minister Chris Fearne confirmed that a cluster of nine cases were found in one home and a cluster of five in another. All people were vaccinated, with Fearne stating the vaccine helped them from developing serious consequences.
Next week, immunosuppressed people will start receiving invitations for their booster doses.
From the first week of October, booster doses will be offered to everyone older than 70, after which the health authorities will decide whether to extend it further to other groups.
All booster doses will be Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, even those who were originally vaccinated with AstraZeneca, with Fearne citing studies showing the first two vaccines are more effective as boosters.