COVID-19 boosters increase protection against death from the Omicron variant to 95% in people aged 50 or over, the UK Health Security Agency said on Thursday.
The UKHSA said that around six months after a second dose of any of the COVID-19 vaccines, protection against death with Omicron was around 60% in those aged 50 and over. However, this increased to around 95% two weeks after receiving a booster vaccine dose.
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British health worker holds up a vial of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine and syringe
(Photo: AFP)
UKHSA added that data continued to show high levels of protection against hospitalization from the booster. Effectiveness against hospitalization was around 90% for the Pfizer-BioNTech shot, dropping to 75% 10-14 weeks after the booster.
For Moderna, effectiveness against hospitalization was 90-95% up to 9 weeks after the booster.
"The evidence is clear — the vaccine helps to protect us all against the effects of COVID-19 and the booster is offering high levels of protection from hospitalization and death in the most vulnerable members of our society," said Dr. Mary Ramsay, Head of Immunisation at UKHSA.
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Man receives a dose of a COVID-19 vaccine in Birmingham, England
(Photo: Gettyimages)
The UKHSA also issued an initial analysis of vaccine effectiveness against the Omicron sublineage called BA.2, which is growing in Britain and Denmark, finding a similar level of protection against symptomatic disease.
"After two doses effectiveness was 9% and 13% respectively for BA.1 and BA.2, after 25+ weeks," the UKHSA said. "This increased to 63% for BA.1 and 70% for BA.2 from two weeks following a booster vaccine."