Eradicate chance of dying from Covid by getting 4th shot: Virologist
There is almost no chance of you dying from Covid-19 if you have had four shots of vaccine, leading virologist Dr Yong Poovorawan reported on Monday.
Dr Yong said data from Chiang Mai health authorities collected over the past two years showed that the more jabs a patient has received, the less likely they are to die from Covid.
“Most deaths and severe symptoms occurred in the unvaccinated and those who had received three jabs or fewer,” Yong said in a Facebook post. “This proves that at least three booster shots are important for those in risky groups, such as the elderly, chronically ill, and people on immunosuppressants.”
Healthy young people can get away with only three jabs as their immunity is already high, Yong said.
However, although Thailand has administered over 150 million doses of Covid vaccine, many people have yet to get their third jabs, he added.
“Scientific data proves conclusively that vaccination significantly reduces the chance of severe symptoms and death, although it cannot prevent the infection.”
The vaccine’s efficacy drops as time passes, so if your last jab was more than four months ago, it is time to get another booster shot to keep you safe from Covid-19, he added.
“People who are on immunosuppressants and can’t get vaccinated can use long-acting antibody (LAAB) treatment as an alternative. The Public Health Ministry is providing the drug for free despite the market price of 30,000 baht per vial,” he said.
