The president of Greece’s National Vaccination Committee said on Monday that anyone who gets sick with the Omicron variant of the coronavirus is more likely to get reinfected than if they get one of the other strains.
The President also said that the 4th dose of the vaccine is only for immunocompromised people and is not recommended for the general population.
Speaking at the weekly briefing live on Monday night, President Maria Theodoridou said that Omicron has higher transmissibility and “increased potential for reinfection.”
“Natural protection against Alpha, Beta and Delta variants provides 90% protection against Omicron,” she said, adding that those with Omicron variant are more likely to be reinfected because the body’s natural defenses provide 60% protection.
Theodoridou reiterated that the 4th dose of the vaccine is for immunocompromised citizens and that there is no plan to give the 4th dose to the general population.
She referred to the recommendations of the Ministry of Health that the 4th dose is not recommended for all citizens, as it will not increase immunity to Covid-19 variants.
“There is a strong recommendation for a booster dose, and the 4th dose is reserved for special cases such as immunocompromised,” she stressed.
Theodoridou added that the purpose of vaccination is to protect against serious cases of the disease.
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