Azerbaijan plans booster jabs for those over 60, medical staff

By Vugar Khalilov

Azerbaijani Deputy Health Minister Viktor Gasimov has said that the third (booster) dose of COVID-19 vaccine has been administered to medical workers and people over 60, local media reported on October 8.

Gasimov made the remarks at the parliamentary health committee meeting dedicated to the current situation on COVID-19, vaccination and measures taken in the country.

"Probably, other age categories will also be involved in it [vaccination with the booster dose]. As of date, the number of people re-infected after vaccination is 1.34 percent, that is, the vaccine used in Azerbaijan is very effective," Gasimov stressed.

The booster dose will be administered in the country from October 8, he added.

Some 53.2 percent of Azerbaijani citizens and 66.2 percent of Baku residents were vaccinated with the second dose of COVID-19 vaccine in the first nine months of 2021, Gasimov said.

He added that 1.7 million doses of the vaccine were administered in September, which means 60,000 doses per day.

Azerbaijan has started vaccination on January 18, 2021, and as of October 6, some 8,841,520 doses have been provided to citizens. The first dose of the vaccine was given to 4,837,342 citizens, and the second one to 4,004,178 citizens.

The second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine loses its previous effect after six months and it takes a person, who received the second dose, long time to get recovered after this period, infectious disease doctor Vugar Jafarzade told Trend on October 7.

"Previously coronavirus was considered a seasonal disease, but this was disproved in practice. After the second dose of the vaccine, the immunity lasts for six months. Therefore, it’s necessary to be vaccinated with the third (booster) dose. Currently, a certain category of people in Azerbaijan apply for receiving the third dose of the vaccine," he said.

"As a specialist of infectious diseases, I recommend persons at risk receive the booster dose. This group includes education workers, people over 60 years old, as well as people below this age who have concomitant diseases," Jafarzade added.

Furthermore, Azerbaijan plans to introduce a new electronic prescription system amid the coronavirus pandemic.

This was stated at the parliamentary health committee meeting.

Moreover, issues such as drug registration, the improvement of coordination and communication in the fight against coronavirus infection, as well as the importance of preventing the spread of disinformation and public education measures were discussed at the meeting.

Deputy Health Minister Viktor Gasimov, Deputy Chairman of the State Agency on Mandatory Health Insurance Nigar Bayramova, Acting Chairman of the Management Union of Medical Territorial Units (TABIB) Vugar Gurbanov, Head of the TABIB Disease Prevention and Control Department Yagut Garayeva, Chief Infectiologist of the Ministry of Health Tayyar Eyvazov provided details about the current coronavirus situation in Azerbaijan, vaccination and other measures and answered MPs' questions.