Elections may further spread the more infectious variant, allowing it to infect vulnerable people that previous variants didn't reach. Chandrakant Lahariya, an Indian epidemiologist.Īlthough the omicron variant seems to cause less severe illness than the delta variant, India’s massive population, crowded cities, and understaffed hospitals mean that health systems may still become strained. This may provide “hybrid immunity” - a combination of immunity from previous infections and vaccines - comparable to boosters, said Dr. About 47% of the population is now fully vaccinated and many have antibodies from previous infections. Since then, the government has bolstered healthcare, built oxygen plants and added beds to hospitals. India's creaky medical infrastructure meant millions likely died. When cases spiked in March last year, not even 1% of its population of nearly 1.4 billion was fully vaccinated. India is better prepared now than it was last year when the delta variant overwhelmed hospitals.
So, whether our health care system will get overwhelmed or not is yet to be seen,” he said. He said boosters are a “significant step” because there are still many unknowns about the omicron variant. Ravindra Kumar Dewan, who heads the National Institute of Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases in New Delhi, queued up for his shot. Hospitalizations, while still relatively low, are also beginning to rise in large, crowded cities such as New Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata.ĭr. The doses, which India is calling a “precautionary” shot instead of a booster, were given as new confirmed coronavirus infections rocketed to over 179,000 on Monday, nearly an eightfold increase in a week.
NEW DELHI (AP) - Healthcare and front-line workers along with people above age 60 with health problems lined up Monday at vaccination centers across India to receive a third dose as infections linked to the omicron variant surge.
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