Germany considers delaying second COVID-19 vaccine shot

Germany was weighing on Monday whether to allow a delay in administering a second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine from BioNTech and Pfizer to make scarce supplies go further, after a similar move by Britain last week.

Separately, Denmark approved on Monday a delay of up to six weeks between the first and second shots of the vaccine.

In Berlin, the health ministry was seeking the view of an independent vaccination commission on whether to delay a second shot beyond a current 42-day maximum limit, according to a one-page document seen by Reuters on Monday.

The move came amid criticism of Health Minister Jens Spahn – including from his conservative political allies – that Germany has failed to procure enough vaccines and been too slow to ramp up its national inoculation campaign.

Spahn told his Christian Democratic Union at a closed-door meeting on Monday that he hoped to offer vaccinations by this summer to everyone in Germany, once more vaccines have won regulatory approval, according to sources who attended.

via Reuters