Copenhagen: Danish health authority said Monday the third dose of the Covid-19 vaccine would be offered faster to everyone more than 40 to curb the spread of the Omicron variant.
“Because the new Omicron variant and more contagious the Danish health authority has decided to encourage third Jab for everyone aged 40 years and over, so they get a four and a half month vaccine after the second jab,” said the health authority in a statement.
By reducing the dose interval, “we will be able to enter winter with better protection for those who increase the risk of severe disease and increased immunity in the population,” Director of Soren Brostrom said.
The third dose was “safe and effective” as soon as three months after the initial vaccine course, said the European Medicine Agency (EMA) last week.
Denmark also recorded a number of new Covid-19 cases on Monday, with 7,799 infections confirmed in the previous 24 hours.
More than a week, the number of cases also at the highest since the start of Pandemi at 46,189 cases, a surge in more than 50 percent compared to the previous week, according to data from the Danish health authority compiled by AFP.
England announced on Sunday night that it would accelerate the launch of the booster dose, open it to all of the 18s before next year.
Denmark is the second worldwide only for England in the cases of confirmed omicrons, with the two countries having a broad sequencing sample to detect variants quickly.
On Sunday, 2,471 Omicron cases have been identified in the Nordic country of 5.8 million people, where 80.6 percent of the population has received two doses of vaccines.
The omicron variant appears to spread faster than the Delta variant, making vaccines less effective but causes less severe symptoms, the World World Health Organization said, while emphasizing that data remains uneven.
Responding to a surge in cases, Denmark reintroduced new restrictions last week, closing schools and colleges, limiting nightlife and promoting remote work.