Sweden: Sweden gives people over 65 the 4th COVID-19 vaccination

The recommendation also includes fourth vaccinations for people aged 18 to 64 with moderate to severe immunodeficiency, Sweden’s health agency said in a statement.

“The goal remains to prevent serious illness and death from COVID-19,” said agency boss Karin Tegmark Wisell.

Tegmark Wisell added that giving a second booster dose to a wider age group was “justified” as infections in Sweden and other countries continue to increase significantly and immunization protection for older age groups is gradually declining.

“For people aged 65 and over, it has now been four months since the previous dose of vaccine and the protective effect of the vaccine wears off over time,” she said.

For most of the pandemic, Sweden has stood out among European nations for its comparatively straightforward response.

It never went into lockdown or business closures, instead relying largely on the responsibility of individuals to control infection.

While coronavirus deaths were high compared to other Nordic countries, they were lower than many other places in Europe where lockdowns were put in place.

Tegmark Wisell emphasized that “the pandemic is not over yet and we in Sweden still have a significant spread of infections in society”.