World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Monday that COVID-19 booster shots should be delayed as priority should be given to raising vaccination rates in countries where only 1% or 2% of the population has been inoculated.
If vaccination rates are not raised globally, stronger variants of the coronavirus could develop and vaccines intended as booster shots should be donated to countries where people have not received their first or second doses, he said during a visit to Budapest.
"In addition, there is a debate about whether booster shots are effective at all," Ghebreyesus told a news conference with Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto.
Those whose immune system is compromised should get a booster shot, though they represent only a small percentage of the population, he added.
The WHO said last week current data does not indicate that COVID-19 booster shots are needed and that the most vulnerable people worldwide should be fully vaccinated before high-income countries deploy a top-up.
The United States announced last week it plans to make COVID-19 vaccine booster shots widely available starting on Sept. 20 as infections rise from the coronavirus Delta variant.
Hungary has already started widely distributing booster shots, with anyone eligible four months after they received their second dose of a coronavirus vaccine.
(Reporting by Krisztina Than and Anita Komuves; Editing by Bernadette Baum)
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Kate, the Princess of Wales, made her first public appearance Sunday since she announced she had completed chemotherapy and would return to some public duties.
Comedian John Mulaney and actor Olivia Munn now have a second child, a daughter named Mei June Mulaney.
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North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson avoided directly weighing in during a gubernatorial campaign event Saturday on a CNN report outlining evidence that he made disturbing posts on a pornography website's message board more than a decade ago.
An explosion in a coal mine in eastern Iran killed at least 33 workers and injured 17 others, officials said Sunday, marking one of the worst mining disasters in the country's history as others remained missing hours after the blast.
More than a year after the Titan submersible imploded, killing all five voyagers on board, the story of the ill-fated expedition to the Titanic has taken the form of a modern-day Greek tragedy overflowing with mortal pride and heedlessness.
In less than two months, Americans will go to the polls to choose their next president. But the process that translates those millions of votes into one seat in the Oval Office is much more complicated than a straight tally.
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The prime minister's official itinerary says the interview will be shot during his trip to New York, where he is meeting with other world leaders ahead of the 78th gathering of the United Nations General Assembly.
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Infectious disease physician Dr. Isaac Bogoch says whooping cough is most risky for unvaccinated infants, children and older people.
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The owner of the shuttered Three Mile Island nuclear power plant said Friday that it plans to restart the reactor under a 20-year agreement that calls for tech giant Microsoft to buy the power to supply its data centers with carbon-free energy.
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Tim Burton's legacy sequel to the 1988 horror comedy topped the North American box office charts for a third
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More than 2,200 zoo professionals from 23 different countries have gathered in Calgary for the annual Association of Zoos and Aquariums conference.
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After Sunday's loss, the White Sox are 36-120 with six regular-season games to go in 2024.
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A growing group of brides and wedding photographers from across the province say they have been taken for tens of thousands of dollars by a Barrie, Ont. wedding photographer.
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The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.
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Â鶹´«Ã½ Montreal at Six for Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024 with anchor Matt Gilmour.
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A year after being recognized as one of 19 ‘Bee Campuses’ by Bee City Canada, Georgian College continues to promote the importance of bees to agriculture, the economy and education.
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Essex-Windsor Emergency Medical Services (EMS) is reporting that it’s above the provincial target for sudden cardiac arrest response times.
The Amherstburg Uncommon Festival is living up to its name with the addition of a drone light show — a first for Essex County.
Work crews have been busy in the British Columbia legislature over the summer, prying apart desks in the historic chamber and piling them up in hallways as they tried to work out how to fit in six more seats.
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A Victoria woman is now $1 million richer after winning a Maxmillions prize on a recent Lotto Max Draw.
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The Red Bridge, a historic landmark in Kamloops, B.C., was completely destroyed by fire early Thursday morning.
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Despite the heavy rain, plenty of muscle turned up for United Way’s annual Pull the Bus fundraiser in Lethbridge Friday.
Lethbridge County has rescinded its fire restriction as a result of the recent cool, wet weathr.
The Lethbridge Hurricanes kicked off the 2024-25 season on a winning note Friday night, defeating the Edmonton Oil Kings 3-1 in a game played at VisitLethbridge.com Arena.
The Royal Canadian Mint has introduced its latest Gold Maple Leaf bullion coin – made entirely from gold sourced from a single mine in northern Ontario
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Newfoundland and Labrador sponsored a minor football team in England, now they’re about to play one of the biggest clubs in European soccer.
Newfoundland and Labrador's chief medical officer is monitoring the rise of whooping cough infections across the province as cases of the highly contagious disease continue to grow across Canada.
A 16-year-old biennial event aimed at fostering business in the country's eastern Arctic and northern regions has been cancelled indefinitely as a dispute unfolds between Inuit in Canada and a Labrador group claiming to share their heritage.
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