According to Yonhap News Agency, the South Korean authorities said yesterday (Feb 14) that it will give the fourth dose of the vaccine to people with low immunity from the end of Feb 2022.
The Korean health authorities said that starting from the first week of next month, about 500,000 residents of nursing homes and related practitioners who have completed the first three shots of vaccination over the age of 18 will be vaccinated with Pfizer and Moderna vaccines.Â
People who have completed the third dose can receive the fourth dose 120 days later. However, for those who are at high risk of cluster infection, the fourth dose can be given 90 days after the third dose is completed.
Zheng Yinjing, director of the Korean Agency for Disease Control and Prevention, said that the government decided to start the fourth dose of the vaccine for groups with severe illness or high risk of death after infection, and has not considered starting this vaccination for regular people for the time being.
Of the approximately 52 million people in South Korea, approximately 44.22 million people have completed the whole course of the new crown vaccine, and approximately 29.43 million people have received the first booster dose.
The mutated new coronavirus Omicron strain is currently spreading rapidly in South Korea.
The number of newly confirmed cases reported by the South Korean epidemic prevention department in a single day has exceeded 50,000 for 5 consecutive days. Health authorities have warned that the number of new cases in a single day could reach 170,000 by the end of the month.