Doha: With nearly 200,000 COVID-19 booster doses been administered in the country, the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) has encouraged people to take the third jab as it is very important for people to have high levels of protection against the virus.
Till yesterday Qatar administered 198,733 booster doses. COVID-19 booster dose was approved by MoPH in late August and the first phase started by mid-September and focused on specific groups.
At present all individuals who received the second COVID-19 vaccine dose at least six months ago are eligible for a booster shot.
MoPH has strongly recommended that anyone planning travel aboard should ensure they have their booster vaccine before travel if they received their second dose at least six months ago.
“Recent increase in cases in Qatar and the new Omicron variant both reinforce the need for people to have maximum protection from the virus through vaccination,” the Ministry said earlier.
The Ministry has also continued to remind public that the COVID-19 booster dose is “safe and effective”.
“Only a limited number of people have reported modest side effects including low-grade fever, mild headache, fatigue and soreness at the injection site, which is commonly seen with other vaccines,” said MoPH.
COVID-19 booster doses are administered at all Primary Health Care Corporation health centers and PHCC is directly contacting people who are eligible for the booster vaccine dose to set an appointment.
Anyone who is eligible and has not yet been contacted can call the PHCC hotline on 4027 7077 to schedule an appointment. COVID-19 vaccination appointments can also be made via PHCC’s bilingual mobile app, Nar’aakom.
MoPH stressed the need to make an appointment before visiting a health center for the COVID-19 booster vaccine by calling the number above or using the Nar’aakom mobile application.
Meanwhile, MoPH reported 151 new cases of COVID-19 yesterday, among them 28 were travellers coming from abroad.
Also 197 people recovered from COVID-19 yesterday, bringing the total number of people recovered in Qatar 243,415. As many as 2,836 COVID-19 vaccine doses were administered in 24 hours while 5,108,730 COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered since the start of the National COVID-19 Vaccination Program.
85.8% of the total population is now fully vaccinated with two doses.
The Ministry also said that, in recent weeks the combined impact of COVID-19 restrictions and increasing vaccination rates, and the overwhelming support of the community, has resulted in a consistent reduction in the number of new daily infections in the country.
“However, it is still important to be cautious as the second wave is not yet over and there are still two highly contagious and highly virulent strains of the virus that are actively circulating in the community,” said the Ministry.
