The surge in hospitalizations related to COVID-19 in the United States over the past few weeks is also a warning sign for other countries.
Post Date – 12:15 AM, Wed – 12/14/22
The surge in hospitalizations related to COVID-19 in the United States over the past few weeks is also a warning sign for other countries.
Hyderabad: The pandemic is far from over. The surge in hospitalizations related to COVID-19 in the United States over the past few weeks is also a warning sign for other countries. Although India has done fairly well in dealing with the pandemic, vaccination coverage still needs to improve. So far, 68.2% of the country’s eligible population has been fully covered, while 73.7% have received at least one dose of the vaccine. Of the 950 million fully vaccinated people, only 220 million received a booster dose. Only 40% of eligible seniors received the booster, compared with 25% of seniors in the 45-59 age group. Given the reinfection rate, the center must allow those who wish to receive booster doses every six months. India, with its large population and scant health infrastructure, should not be economized or complacent when it comes to vaccinations. There must be a strong push for comprehensive vaccination coverage in municipalities and other local institutions. The World Health Organization (WHO) has been warning that the epidemic is not going away and that new, more vigorous variants could emerge at any time. The Covid surveillance regime needs to continue with the same enthusiasm. People should be encouraged to wear masks and maintain physical distance in public places. The center has to offer monetary incentives to domestic vaccine companies such as the Serum Institute of India (SII), Bharat Biotech and Biological E to update their vaccines against the latest coronavirus variant.
The rest of the world can learn from China’s missteps in handling the outbreak. Its “zero Covid” policy backfired, leading to mass public protests against unjustified restrictions, while local Covid vaccines have proven ineffective. For countries like India, new variants and hospitalizations need to be tracked, vaccine companies are incentivized to develop and update vaccines and drugs, and citizens are persuaded to get vaccinated and boosted. Following the surge in Omicrons in January, Covid eased the conditions that allowed schools, colleges and offices to fully reopen. On the other hand, vaccination rates have fallen unexpectedly sharply. What is even more worrying is that most Indian vaccine companies have stopped producing new crown vaccines. In December, SII stopped making its workhorse Covishield after hundreds of thousands of doses expired. Bharat Biotech’s novel intranasal vaccine has been approved as a xenoboost after passing safety and immunogenicity trials. Although its efficacy must be measured, the company has sought to include it in the CoWin portal so citizens can get vaccinated. In addition to encouraging domestic companies to focus on research and development, foreign vaccine manufacturers such as Pfizer and Moderna, which are constantly updating vaccines, should be invited to produce in India.
