ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

Skip to main content

National vaccine panel recommends 3rd COVID-19 vaccine dose for immunocompromised people

Share
TORONTO -

The National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) is now recommending that some immunocompromised people receive three doses of a COVID-19 vaccine.

that “moderately to severely immunocompromised†individuals who have not yet been immunized should receive three doses of an authorized mRNA vaccine. Those who have already completed a series of an mRNA or a viral vector vaccine should get an additional dose of an mRNA vaccine, NACI recommends.

Two mRNA vaccines, manufactured by Pfizer and Moderna, have been authorized for use in Canada.

NACI Chair Dr. Shelley Deeks said in a statement Friday that the recommendation is being made after a careful review of available data.

“This is not unusual for immunocompromised groups, where we often recommend different vaccine schedules to help them achieve better protection,†Deeks said.  “This is different from a booster dose, which would be used to boost an immune response that has waned over time.  NACI is also looking at whether booster doses might be needed for some key populations, but it is too early to comment on the state of the evidence for general boosters at this time.â€

Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam said there’s a “very broad†group of individuals who may have an underlying condition or be undergoing medical treatments that compromise their immune systems. Examples include people being treated for solid tumours or blood malignancies and organ transplant recipients who take immunosuppressive drugs, she told reporters at a news conference Friday.

“What the recommendation is, and how that is derived, is really looking at the fact that some of these individuals, through studies, have had a lower immune response to the initial one or two doses of COVID-19 vaccine compared to the general population,†Tam said. She said recent, limited studies show that some of those individuals can have an increased immune response after a third vaccine dose.

Tam said immunocompromised individuals should talk to their health care providers to discuss their particular situations.

The province of Quebec is already offering booster shots for the and for travellers whose mixed dosing isn’t recognized in other countries. and are also rolling out third shots for eligible immunocompromised populations.

With files from Brooke Taylor

CTVNews.ca ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

The province's public security minister said he was "shocked" Thursday amid reports that a body believed to be that of a 14-year-old boy was found this week near a Hells Angels hideout near Quebec City.

B.C.'s police watchdog is investigating the death of a woman who was shot by the RCMP after allegedly barricading herself in a room with a toddler early Thursday morning.

An Ontario man says it is 'unfair' to pay a $1,500 insurance surcharge because his four-year-old SUV is at a higher risk of being stolen.

Local Spotlight

They say a dog is a man’s best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.

Paleontologists from the Royal B.C. Museum have uncovered "a trove of extraordinary fossils" high in the mountains of northern B.C., the museum announced Thursday.

The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.

It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.

A Good Samaritan in New Brunswick has replaced a man's stolen bottle cart so he can continue to collect cans and bottles in his Moncton neighbourhood.

David Krumholtz, known for roles like Bernard the Elf in The Santa Clause and physicist Isidor Rabi in Oppenheimer, has spent the latter part of his summer filming horror flick Altar in Winnipeg. He says Winnipeg is the most movie-savvy town he's ever been in.

Edmontonians can count themselves lucky to ever see one tiger salamander, let alone the thousands one local woman says recently descended on her childhood home.

A daytrip to the backcountry turned into a frightening experience for a Vancouver couple this weekend.

Stay Connected