Fourth vaccine dose for people aged 80 and older

Luxembourg will give out a second booster shot of the Covid-19 vaccine for people aged 80 and above on the advice of health bodies, bringing the total number of shots for the age group to four.

Both the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) recommended a second booster shot to protect against the coronavirus for people over 80 this month.

Luxembourg is still debating whether to make vaccination mandatory for people of 50 years and older and for healthcare workers, Justice Minister Sam Tanson has said, after Germany rejected plans to make the shots compulsory.

Lawmakers lifted most of the rules to contain Covid-19 in mid-March, but the fewer cases of the disease are now occurring throughout the Grand Duchy. As of Wednesday, 30 people were in hospital, only two of those in intensive care.

Luxembourg, with a population of more than 640,000 has so far administered close to 1.3 million doses, but this includes a number of cross-border workers living abroad. Of the population, roughly one in four remains unvaccinated.

Anybody older than 65 could get a fourth dose of a vaccine, the health ministry said earlier this year, but it quickly retracted what it said had been an erroneous message. People with medical vulnerabilities were already able to get a second booster shot, three months after the first booster.

People above the age of 80 will receive an invitation for a second booster at least four months after the first booster dose, the government said on Wednesday.

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