The fourth dose of the corona vaccine will be given in the country from December 20.
Priority will be given to those over 60 years of age who have received the third dose of the vaccine and those suffering from various complications for a long time.
According to a notification of the Department of Health, only the Pfizer vaccine will be given as the fourth dose. This vaccine will be given in all permanent immunization centers including upazila level hospitals across the country.
According to the information of the Department of Health, there are about 1,000 such vaccination centers in the country. Apart from the elderly, pregnant and lactating mothers and frontline workers will be given a fourth dose.
Earlier this month, Health Minister ZahidMaleque had announced that citizens aged over 60 years will get the 4th dose of the coronavirus vaccine following a nod from Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
A notification was issued in this regard by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) on Thursday (15 December).
The Pfizer mRNA Covid-19 vaccine will be used for the fourth dose, said the official notification. People who received their first booster at least four months ago, people aged over 60 years. Later on Jan 1, the campaign will be expanded to inoculate people above the age of 60, frontline workers and those suffering from comorbidities, according to the health directorate. Selected people will be informed about the fourth dose through SMS a day before their vaccination.
Those who receive the experimental vaccine will be kept under observation for two weeks, said the Health Department. Earlier this campaign was launched experimentally for one day in 7 centers of Dhaka.
So far, 14 crore people have been vaccinated with the first dose while more than 12 crore people with the second dose and six crore with the booster dose against Covid-19 in Bangladesh.
Apart from this, the decision has been taken due to the recent increase in the number of coronavirus infections in various countries.
The government is aiming to provide the fourth vaccine dose to over 20 million people, according to a notification of the Department of Health.
