Covid booster dose every 6 months for those at high risk
Head of preventive and promotive health service at the Ministry of Health Dr Andrew Mulwa has called on those yet to be vaccinated to get the jab.
Kenyans who are at high risk of contracting Covid-19 will need to get a booster dose every six months.
They include those who work in healthcare, security personnel, the elderly, and people who already have medical conditions.
Head of preventive and promotive health service at the Ministry of Health Dr Andrew Mulwa has called on those yet to be vaccinated to get the jab.
"Those who have taken the jab, especially the elderly and those living with comorbidities to ensure that they take a booster shot after every six months," Mulwa said.
"Of course with low infections there has been a low-risk perception amongst the population and therefore the uptake of the Covid vaccination has dived in the last seven months or so."
The ministry said even though hospitalisation and deaths have reduced, the risk persists particularly with the global emergence of variants of concern.
The number of people presenting to take the jab has been relatively low after the decline of the sixth wave.
The current daily average stands at about 6,000 daily vaccinations compared to more than 30,000 during the peak of the pandemic.
In the last 24 hours, 20,643 vaccines have been administered while the total number of people fully vaccinated during the same time is at 5,127.
Up to this point, 22.2 million vaccinations have been given across the nation; 18,106,493 of those were given to adults over the age of 18 and another 2.6 million were given to children aged 12 to under 18.
The number of booster doses has increased to 1,439,130, and 35.8 per cent of individuals have received all recommended doses.
Only Nairobi, Nyeri and Siaya have managed to fully vaccinate more than half of their targeted population at 54.6 per cent, 54.0 per cent and 51.1 per cent respectively while others like Mandera, Wajir, Tana River, Wajir, Marsabit, Isiolo and Garissa have vaccinated less than 15 per cent.
“We have noted that with the decline in prevalence of the disease as evidenced through consistent low positivity rates, there has also been a significant decline in demand for these lifesaving commodities,” vaccines deployment taskforce chairperson Willis Akhwale said.
