Fourth vaccine dose uncertain in Iraq: health ministry

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Iraqi health ministry is still unclear on whether they will offer a fourth shot of the coronavirus vaccine as the majority of people hospitalized due to the virus are unvaccinated, an official from the ministry said on Tuesday.

“Most countries in the world have rolled out the third dose of vaccine to those who had already been vaccinated twice, but it is not clear if there is going to be a fourth dose of the vaccine,” the head of the ministry’s general directorate, Riyadh AbdulAmir told Iraqi state media, adding that the majority of those who are hospitalized because of the virus are people who have not been vaccinated.

Some countries have approved the administration of the fourth dose of the vaccine. Israel was among the first countries to start rolling out a fourth dose for people that are over sixty, health workers, and anyone considered medically vulnerable, AFP reported on Sunday. 

As the newly detected Omicron variant spreads across the country, Iraqi officials have warned of low vaccine demand. 

Over 9.4 million people have been vaccinated in Iraq, according to the ministry's latest data. 

A new wave of the coronavirus hit Iraq and the Kurdistan Region after the detection of the first cases of the Omicron variant in January. Both areas are seeing a renewed surge in infections following a decline in cases.

Omicron variant was first reported by the World Health Organization (WHO) on November 24, and was designated as a variant of concern two
days later as it spread to several countries. WHO has said that evidence shows that Omicron causes milder symptoms than the Delta variant, Reuters quoted a health official as saying.

In November, Iraq and the Kurdistan Region rolled out the third dose of the vaccine and made Pfizer jabs available for 12-year-olds and above.

Iraq on Monday recorded over 5,285 new infections and 27 deaths.