"Can Look At Covid Vaccine Boosters After A Year": AIIMS Chief To NDTV

AIIMS chief Dr Randeep Guleria also discussed vaccination of children and said he was confident vaccines for kids would be rolled out soon

Booster doses of the COVID-19 vaccine might become necessary sometime next year - depending on how long the first two doses protect against hospitalisation and death - Dr Randeep Guleria, chief of Delhi's All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) told NDTV on Saturday.

The AIIMS chief also discussed vaccination of children and said he was confident vaccines for kids - something other countries, like the United States, has recommended - would be rolled out soon.

Dr Guleria told NDTV the final decision on boosters - a timeline is being discussed - would have to be based on time (length of protection from the coronavirus) rather than the presence of antibodies.

"We don't have a definite answer, yet, on a timeline for boosters. We can't decide to give booster shots based on antibodies... it has to be based on time - i.e., how long has it been since you got the second dose. Normally after a year we can start looking at booster shots," he said.