France allows COVID-19 booster shots for all adults, shortens interval to 5 months

PARIS — French Health Minister Olivier Veran confirmed on Thursday that COVID-19 booster shots will be made available to all adults starting this weekend, with the government hoping that the move will help contain a new wave of the disease.

Veran also said during a news conference that the delay between a full vaccination program and a booster shot will be shortened to five months instead of six.

France's Haute Autorite de Sante (HAS) health regulator said it was backing booster COVID vaccination shots for those aged 18 and over, and that the interim period between full vaccination and the booster shots should be shortened to five months.

HAS mentioned a renewed spread of the coronavirus that was "stronger than anticipated," and that the 'R' reproduction rate of 1.35 indicated "exponential growth" of infections.

On Wednesday, health authorities reported over 30,000 new infections for a second day in a row, a sequence unseen since end-April.

The seven-day moving average of daily new cases—which evens out reporting irregularities—stands at a three-month high of 21,761 and has almost quadrupled in a month.

The number of people treated in intensive care for COVID-19 is nearly 1,500, a figure last seen at the end of September.

President Emmanuel Macron's government on Wednesday said it would focus on tougher social distancing rules and a faster booster shot program and that it wanted to avoid imposing lockdowns again as some other European countries have done.

The PCR tests for the non-vaccinated will only be valid for one day—instead of 72 hours currently—and working from home is likely to be recommended when possible.

Booster shots will become a requirement for a valid health pass, which is required in France to enter restaurants, cafes, cinemas and museums, among other public venues.

According to data available on the health ministry's website, France has more than 30 millions vaccines in stock. — Reuters