China greenlights Covid-19 booster shots for high-risk residents

China has greenlit booster shots for people at high risk of contracting Covid-19, citing studies that show the immune system fights off the infection better when a third dose of its homegrown vaccines are given. 

Those at risk - including workers at health care and quarantine facilities, patients with weak immune systems, aviation and customs workers and people over the age of 60 - are eligible for a booster shot six months after they are fully vaccinated, said Zheng Zhongwei, who heads the task force overseeing Covid-19 vaccine research and development.  Travelers heading to high-risk regions outside of China can also get a booster shot six months after they are fully vaccinated, Zheng said, citing experts’ recommendations. Further studies are needed to determine whether the rest of the population would benefit from the extra immunization, he said in a briefing with reporters in Beijing.