According to a media report, the German Association of General Practitioners fears that vaccination against the coronavirus will involve considerable effort in medical practices. With regard to the further developed vaccine from Biontech/Pfizer approved by the EU Commission last Friday, the vice president of the association, Nicola Buhlinger-Göpfarth, told the “Spiegel” that it was annoying that the vaccine was not available as a single dose.
“We will end up in organizational overkill again if we either quickly organize five more vaccinees, postpone the vaccination or throw away five vaccine doses every time a Biontech vaccination is necessary,” said the deputy federal chairwoman. According to the report, the vaccine will be delivered in vials containing six doses.
Biontech told the “Spiegel” that preparations were currently underway to also bring single doses of the adapted vaccine onto the market. However, it is not yet clear when these could be available in Germany. “We understand what doctors want,” the company said.
The vaccine is a preparation adapted to the Omicron subline XBB.1.5, which is intended to provide better protection against variants currently circulating. The Standing Vaccination Commission in Germany now only recommends booster vaccinations for certain groups, preferably in the fall. These include people over 60, people with certain previous illnesses from the age of six months, nursing and health workers and relatives of risk patients.
