An advisory group of the World Health Organization (WHO) has said that it strongly supports urgent and widespread access to COVID-19 vaccines and boosters, particularly in individuals having a high risk for severe disease.

The global health agency’s recommendation reverses previous advice which emphasized global vaccine equity for first doses over the distribution of booster shots in affluent nations. The agency, on Tuesday, retreated from its earlier statements and said that booster jabs were recommended once countries had a sufficient supply of vaccines and that they had the capability of protecting the most vulnerable.

The advisory group said that vaccines against COVID-19 protect against severe disease and death as the Omicron variant of coronavirus spreads across the globe. Some nations in the WHO’s Western Pacific region continue to log a high number of cases and deaths… (WebMD, March 9, 2022)