Covid-19: Who should get vaccinated again?
The Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) and the Federal Commission for Immunization Questions (EKIF) have approved the Covid 19 vaccination recommendations for fall and winter 2023/24. The coronavirus continues to circulate and can cause severe courses of disease in people who are particularly at risk. They are therefore recommended to be vaccinated in autumn 2023.
According to the FOPH, the initial situation has changed significantly, particularly compared to the pandemic years 2020 and 2021: Individuals up to age 65 with no risk factors have a very low risk of severe disease. In comparison, however, particularly at-risk individuals have a significantly increased risk of a severe course of Covid 19, the federal office emphasizes. They are therefore recommended to be vaccinated in the fall. It offers them increased protection against severe disease.
New mutations
According to the FOPH, the currently circulating variants of the coronavirus have new mutations that would allow them to partially bypass acquired immunity. In addition, the longer the vaccination or infection occurred, the less protection there is against vaccination (or against infection). The FOPH and EKIF (Federal Commission for Immunization Issues) expect that these two factors, along with increased indoor contacts, may lead to an increase in infection rates in the fall and winter, according to the media release.
The coronavirus still leads to infections and cases of disease that can be severe, especially in those at particular risk. Vaccination thus offers them good protection against severe courses, but provides little protection against transmission and infection or against mild, symptomatic covid 19 disease.
Single dose of vaccination is recommended
The EKIF and the FOPH recommend a single dose of vaccine against Covid-19 for those at particular risk in the fall and winter of 2023/24. This group is reported to include all of the
- Persons over 65 years of age,
- Individuals 16 years of age and older with pre-existing conditions,
- Persons with trisomy 21,
- pregnant women with pre-existing conditions.
Pregnant women without risk factors are advised to be vaccinated if the attending physician deems it medically necessary.
For all other persons, vaccination against Covid-19 is not recommended. For people without risk factors, no official recommendation is made because the probability of severe disease is low. If they would like to receive a vaccination, this is possible against payment, according to the FOPH.
Timing of vaccination and adapted vaccine
According to the federal office, vaccination ideally occurs between mid-October and December 2023. The cantons would provide individual information on the availability of Covid 19 vaccination.
The Covid 19 vaccine comprises a single vaccine dose. It should be administered no earlier than six months after the last Covid 19 vaccine dose or the last known infection with coronavirus.
The EKIF and the BAG recommend vaccination preferably with an mRNA or protein vaccine adapted to variant XBB.1.5. Currently, the FOPH and EKIF assume that the vaccines adapted to XBB.1.5 provide good protection against severe disease even with the currently circulating variants.
These vaccines are currently undergoing the approval process with the therapeutic products authority Swissmedic, as the media release concludes.
New BAG Infoportal
In the fall, the FOPH is launching a new information portal. According to the Federal Office, it provides a clear overview of the epidemiological development of communicable diseases in Switzerland. At the start, the portal shows the numbers of reported influenza and Covid 19 infections as well as other respiratory viruses. The FOPH is expanding the information portal step by step to include other communicable diseases, it says.
