Israel says 3rd Pfizer dose boosts protection

JERUSALEM • A third dose of Pfizer's Covid-19 vaccine has significantly improved protection from infection and serious illness among people from age 60 in Israel, compared with those who received two shots, findings published by the Health Ministry show.

The data was presented at a meeting of a ministry panel of vaccination experts last Thursday and uploaded to its website on Sunday.

The findings were on a par with separate statistics reported last week by Israel's Maccabi healthcare provider, one of several organisations administering booster shots to try to curb the Delta coronavirus variant. Some 37 people tested positive for the coronavirus after their third jab, compared with 1,064 positive cases among those who had received only two doses, Maccabi said in a statement.

Breaking down statistics from Israel's Gertner Institute and KI Institute, ministry officials said that, among people aged 60 and over, the protection against infection provided from 10 days after a third dose was four times higher than after two doses.

REUTERS