Interval between first and second coronavirus vaccine doses shortened to 21 days

Individuals newly registering for a coronavirus vaccine will have to wait just 21 days before they receive their second vaccine dose, Health Minister Adam Vojtěch told the Czech News Agency on Monday. Children, who have already been registered, will be able to change their second vaccine dose date to fit the new 21 day plan. However, adults who already have a second dose date planned, will not be able to change.

The decision comes after an earlier announcement by Prime Minister Andrej Babiš, who said that the aim was to speed up inoculation as much as possible in view of the spread of the contagious Delta variant in Europe.

At present the second dose is most frequently administered after 34 days, previously it was in 38 to 42 days. Pfizer/BioNTech is the most common vaccine administered in the country.

More than a third of the population, about 3.8 million people, are now fully vaccinated, another 1.4 million people have received a single dose.