(Bloomberg) —
Australia added the Moderna Inc. Covid-19 vaccine to Pfizer Inc.’s as a recommended booster shot and reduced the waiting time, responding to concerns about the increased spread caused by the omicron variant.
Australia is cutting the standard waiting time for a booster shot to five months from six, following the first two doses. The approval came from the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunization, the health department said Sunday in a statement. ATAGI acted given the likelihood of ongoing transmission of both omicron and delta variants, the department said.
“What this will do, is it will mean an extra 1.5 million people are now eligible to immediately access the boosters,” Health Minister Greg Hunt said in Melbourne, after receiving a Moderna booster shot. “By the start of January, 4.1 million Australians will be eligible to have the booster.
Australia’s most populous state, New South Wales, saw the pace of new cases decline for the first time in six days. The state said Sunday there were 485 new infections, versus 560 reported Saturday. There are 55 omicron variant cases in New South Wales, after 10 were confirmed overnight, and more are expected as results of genomic testing are confirmed, the government said. Victoria state said it recorded 1,069 additional cases, down from 1,193.
Hunt said 683,000 Australians had received a booster shot.
(Adds comment from health minister in third paragraph, updates number that have had booster in final paragraph.)
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