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Thailand To Mix AstraZeneca and Sinovac Vaccine Doses

Thailand has changed its vaccine policy as it faces a major increase in Covid-19 cases and has decided to mix vaccines to boost protection.

Some people who received their first Sinovac jab will not get a second dose of the same vaccine: it will now be an AstraZeneca shot.

Additionally, healthcare workers fully vaccinated with Sinovac will also receive a third dose of a different vaccine as a booster.

The booster shot can be the AstraZeneca vaccine or another mRNA vaccine, such as those from Moderna or Pfizer.

On Monday, Thailand’s National Infectious Diseases Committee said that people could get the third dose three to four weeks after the second jab.

The decision comes after health officials reported that hundreds of medical workers had caught the virus despite being fully inoculated with both Sinovac doses.

Currently, the government only has AstraZeneca vaccines available, and Pfizer shots donated by the United States are expected to arrive soon.

On Sunday, the Health Ministry said that more than 677,000 medical staff members had been fully vaccinated with Sinovac.

Thailand received the first batch of vaccines from the Chinese firm in February and began inoculating its health workers shortly after.

Between April and June, 618 of them caught the coronavirus.

Besides, a nurse passed away, and one medical staff is still in critical condition, the Health Ministry added.

A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine analyzing Chile’s results suggests that the Sinovac vaccine has a 65.9% efficacy rate against Covid-19.

Furthermore, the study says the vaccine is 87.5% effective in preventing hospitalization and 86.3% effective in preventing death.

The Kingdom faces a third wave of the pandemic that has caused record numbers.

On Sunday, the country recorded a new high with 9,418 new transmissions after reporting a record 91 deaths the day before.

Doubts about the Sinovac vaccine’s efficacy amid the Covid-19 cases resurgence have dramatically driven demand for other vaccines, particularly mRNA jabs.

Last week, Phyathai Hospital’s offers of Moderna vaccine on a private online shopping platform sold out minutes after the booking began.

Thais have demanded more effective vaccines against coronavirus variants as the most contagious Delta strain, first detected in India, spreads in the country.