JAKARTA - Infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci from the United States (US) said on Sunday, people with some health problems may need a third dose or booster of the COVID-19 vaccine, due to the Delta variant.

"Those who include transplant patients, cancer chemotherapy, autoimmune diseases, who are on immunosuppressant regimens, are individuals who if there were to be a third (vaccine) booster, which might happen, would be the first to receive it," Fauci said in an interview with CNN. Monday 26 July.

He further explained that US health officials are considering whether to revise mask guidelines for vaccinated Americans, saying it was "under active consideration".

Citing studies that suggest there may be a decrease in immunity in people who are vaccinated, Anthony Fauci said US health officials are reviewing the data to determine when a booster may be needed.

"It's a dynamic situation. It's a work in progress, evolving as in many other areas of the pandemic. You have to look at the data," said Fauci, director of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

Last week, Israel's Ministry of Health reported a decrease in the effectiveness of the Pfizer vaccine in preventing infection and symptomatic disease. However, the two-dose COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer with BioNTech is still highly effective in preventing severe disease.

The decline in the efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccine coincided with the spread of the Delta variant, which is now the dominant strain in Israel.

Israel gave the third dose of the vaccine to people with impaired immunity, including those who had undergone heart, lung, kidney or liver transplants and cancer patients receiving chemotherapy.

The Delta variant, which was first discovered in India, is also increasing infections in the United States and globally in the world.

The sharpest increase in COVID-19 cases occurred in places with lower vaccination rates. Florida, Texas, and Missouri account for 40 percent of all new cases nationwide, with about one in five new US cases occurring in Florida, White House adviser Jeffrey Zients said last week.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Sunday reported an increase in the number of doses of the vaccine administered in the past 24 hours to 778,996, the highest number given in a 24-hour period since the United States reported delivering 1.16 million doses on July 3.

However, that number is far below the peak of 4.63 million doses reported on April 10. Despite the increase, the COVID-19 vaccination rate in the United States is generally declining, according to CDC data.

As vaccines become widely available in the spring, President Joe Biden is campaigning aggressively for the public to get a COVID-19 vaccine, especially in states and communities that are vaccinated.

Separately, White House Chief of Staff Ronald Klain on Sunday praised the CDC, along with the increase in COVID-19 vaccinations in the US.

Last week, Pfizer and BioNTech said the United States had purchased more than 200 million doses of their vaccine to help vaccinate children as well as possibly booster shots.


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