42% of those eligible for third shot unsure about taking it: National survey

MUMBAI: Three out of every 10 people eligible for the precautionary dose haven’t taken it so far because they suffered from Omicron-Covid in the last month, while another 30% said they would take it after the third wave gets over, according to a national survey. The remaining 42% are “unsure” or “hesitant” about taking the third or shot, found the survey among 22,000 people who’re eligible but haven’t taken it so far.

In Maharashtra, the hesitant group is bigger at 45%, with almost 10% clearly stating that they don’t want to take the shot as it “isn’t helpful”.

The precautionary vaccine drive begun on January 10 has been sluggish so far, with 1.25 crore doses – or roughly 22% of those eligible -- given out so far. A Central health ministry estimate put the number of potential beneficiaries at 5.7 crore, with 1.05 crore healthcare workers, 1.9 crore frontline workers, and 2.75 crore comorbid people in the 60-plus age-group.

Of 42% who were unsure, 14% said they may not take the precautionary shot, which scientists in many western countries believe has helped blunt the effect of the hyper-transmissible Omicron variant.

In Maharashtra, where 1.25 crore senior citizens are eligible for the third shot, only 5 lakh have taken it in the last three weeks. But state immunization officer Dr Sachin Desai isn’t too worried. “Not all senior citizens become eligible instantaneously. They can get the shot nine months after their second shot. And, we have noticed that people are taking the shot as they become eligible,” said Dr Desai.

A dean of a medical college admitted that the nine-month gap between two shots had affected the pace of the precautionary dose. “Moreover, many of our staff got Covid and couldn’t take the booster shot as a result,” said the senior doctor.

State immunisation officer Dr Desai said roughly 15% of the eligible people have suffered from Covid in the last five weeks. “This group will have to wait a few more weeks but we are confident that they will take the shot as this group is aware,” said Dr Desai.

According to the survey carried out by LocalCircles, 55% of the 2,000 people interviewed in Maharashtra want to take the shot. Of this, 34% said they had recently got Omicron-Covid and another 21% said they would wait for the third wave to decline before stepping out to take the precautionary shot. In Maharashtra, 10% believe the precautionary shot isn’t helpful and don’t plan to take it. “Around 8% of those surveyed hadn’t taken any Covid dose so far,” said Sachin Taparia of LocalCircles.