COVID-19 prevention dose time is reduced for those traveling abroad.
Posted on May 17, 2022 by Ghoomophiro
The union government of India announced that Indians can now take a precaution dose of their COVID-19 anytime three months after the double jab if traveling abroad for genuine reasons such as for jobs, participation in sports meetings, being a part of India’s official delegation, studies or for business purposes as per requirements of the destination country. This stipulated period was nine months before this relaxation.
In a letter to states and union territories, the union government of Inda claimed that the necessary provisions had been made on the national Co-WIN portal to enable updating of the precaution dose so administered. The people looking to get the dose are not required to upload documents such as visas.
The Union Health Ministry of India has received several requests for permitting the early administration of precaution dose to those who need to undertake international travel for educational purposes, employment opportunities, participating in sports tournaments, and attending bilateral and multilateral meetings as part of India’s official delegation, and business commitments, Manohar Agnani said. He is the Additional Secretary in the Union Health Ministry of India.
“In this context, to facilitate international travel for such genuine reasons, the necessary provision of early administration of precaution dose for these travelers has been made on the Co-WIN portal under the National Covid-19 Vaccination Programme”, Agnani stated in the guidelines shared by him.
Based on the recommendations of various experts, the competent authority has thus approved early administration of precaution dose as required by the destination country for these overseas travelers, but subject to a minimum period of at least 90 days between the second dose and the precaution dose.
“The necessary provisions for the same have been made on Co-WIN,” Mr. Agnani stated.
“It is requested that the guidelines be widely publicized to all government and private CVCs and for the general public and all necessary measures be taken immediately to implement the same,” he added.
Currently, healthcare workers, frontline workers, and citizens aged 60 years and above who are fully vaccinated (with two doses) and have completed nine months (39 weeks) after the second dose are eligible to take the precaution dose at any of the government or private Covid-19 Vaccination Centres (CVCs).
Citizens aged 18 years and more but less than 60 years are allowed to take the precaution dose only at private Covid-19 Vaccination Centres (CVCs) on a payment basis. It can also be availed at government Covid-19 Vaccination Centres (CVCs) in a few states, based on the respective state’s notification, the letter mentioned.
The vaccine administered as a preventive dose is a homologous vaccine that is the same as administered in the first and second doses.
The guidelines added that all technical protocols mentioned as prescribed in the guidelines regarding vaccination centers and adverse events following immunization (AEFI) management would have to be followed.
That is one of the several incentives the union government of India is taking to boost the travel industry that was heavily affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. As the number of COVID-19 cases declines and the country has completed the world’s largest vaccination drive to vaccinate its population against COVID-19, the atmosphere is relaxing, and domestic and international airlines are opening. More and more people are looking to travel.
This move by the central government will come as a massive relief to those who wanted to travel abroad for such genuine reasons but were unable because their destination country required them to have a preventive dose which they couldn’t have of the time gap of nine months after the second dose had not yet finished.
