A change announced today by Australia to the national rollout in response to the Omicron variant will bring forward access to a COVID-19 booster shot by a month for millions.
Based on advice received from the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI), the waiting time between second and third Covid jabs has been cut from six to five months, in the hope the boosters will reduce transmission of the Omicron and Delta variants.
The fast-tracking of booster shots will start immediately.
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Earlier, ATAGI also gave the final approval for Moderna to be used for the booster shot, alongside Pfizer. It means that Australians will be able to choose either the Pfizer or Moderna mRNA vaccine.
This means that an additional 2.35 million Australians will now become eligible for the booster dose by 31 December, taking the total number to more than 4 million. Around 670,000 Australians have already received a booster shot.
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