KATHMANDU, Dec 31: The government has initiated the process of bringing in additional doses of vaccines (booster dose) in view of the increasing cases of COVID-19 in the neighboring countries.

The Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP) has formally written a letter to the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunizations (GAVI), to bring COVID-19 vaccines for booster doses. Sagar Dahal, head of the vaccination branch of the Family Welfare Division under the Department of Health Services, said that a letter has been sent to GAVI on Thursday requesting 1.5 million vaccines for the country through the Covax facility.

"We wrote a letter to the concerned bodies [on Thursday] to bring the vaccine for booster dose as the infection of coronavirus is spreading rapidly. Covax is expected to send the vaccines in the first week of January," said Dahal.

The government has started bringing the Pfizer vaccine which is used only for booster doses. The vaccination branch sent the letter to Covax after the Department of Drug Administration (DDA) issued a letter giving permission for the 'emergency use' of vaccines for dose.

Similarly, Santosh KC, the spokesperson for the DDA, confirmed that a letter has been issued to the immunization wing of the Family Welfare Division granting permission to bring the booster doses. "The vaccine that has been brought for the booster dose is different from regular vaccines," he said.

After the new variant - BF7 - started spreading in the neighboring countries, India and China, the MoHP has asked all those who missed the booster dose to get vaccinated immediately. The MoHP has also requested to use masks, maintain physical distance, wash hands with soap water or use sanitizer regularly to avoid infection.

Till date, a total of 53,506,207 people have received vaccines against Covid-19 in Nepal. Among them, 23,208,483 individuals have received the first dose of vaccine while 23,224,933 people have received the second dose and 7,972,791 people have received the booster doses in Nepal. 

With the increasing number of COVID-19 cases in neighboring countries, the government has made wearing face masks mandatory at the Tribhuvan International Airport. After the health ministry issued a caution notice regarding the safety protocol last Friday, the TIA authorities made it mandatory for the officials and other individuals concerned to use facemasks on the premises of TIA. 

Similarly, vigilance has been upped in various border checkpoints to prevent the spread of coronavirus infection. Government authorities have also set up health desks at the country’s major entry points for testing those entering Nepal from India as precautionary measures.

 
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