By HTAC Recommendation for Booster Shots, Additional Vaccines Approved By DOH
Department of Health Secretary Francisco Duque III has approved the interim guidelines recommended by the Health Technology Assessment Council (HTAC) on the inoculation of booster shots and additional doses of the coronavirus vaccine in the country.
Vaccination Strategies
HTAC has recommended the implementation of the following vaccination strategies from Q4 of 2021 until 2022:
Boosters among healthcare workers (A1) and Elderly Populations (A2) 4th quarter of 2021
HTAC recommends booster vaccination for the last quarter of 2021 among the A1 and A2 priority groups at least six (6) months after their primary inoculation, provided there is sufficient vaccine supply.
Boosters among eligible priority groups
Also recommended by HTAC is the booster vaccination following the same prioritization among eligible groups (A1 to 15) ONLY IF the following criteria have been met:
- 50% vaccination coverage for all priority groups
- at least 70% of the total target population in the hotspot regions (Manila, Cebu, Davao, Iloilo, CALABARZON, Region 3) belonging to the A1-A5 priority groups have been vaccinated.
Recommended Boosters
| Primary Series | Recommended Booster |
|---|---|
| Pfizer-BioNTech | Pfizer-BioNTech (homologous) |
| AstraZeneca | Pfizer-BioNTech* (heterologous) |
| AstraZeneca | |
| Janssen | Janssen (homologous) |
| CoronaVac (Sinovac) | Pfizer-BioNTech, AstraZeneca* (heterologous) |
| CoronaVac (Sinovac) - homologous (only for those contraindicated with mRNA/AstraZeneca) |
|
| Moderna | Pfizer-BioNTech* (heterologous) |
| Moderna (homologous) | |
| *preferred booster | |
Additional dose/third dose for immunocompromised individuals
An additional dose of the same vaccine (homologous) at least 28 days after the completion of the initial COVID-19 vaccine has also been recommended for immunocompromised individuals. For immunocompromised individuals who received Janssen and CoronaVac (Sinovac), HTAC recommends a heterologous additional dose using Pfizer-BioNTech.
According to a statement released by the World Health Organization, immunocompromised individuals with an insufficient immune response to primary series must be prioritized for an additional dose especially when there is evidence of waning immunity, severe disease, and death.
SOURCE: HTAC
