France has become the first country in the world to recommend a different vaccine regime for those who have recovered from the virus. The country’s public health authority has recommended that people previously infected with Covid-19 only receive one jab, rather than two. The advice is based on preliminary data, including two studies from the United States, that show the combination of antibodies built up from having the virus, plus one jab, creates immunity that ‘is equal to or even exceeds’ having two vaccines.
It wasn’t long ago that French ministers were publicly criticising the UK’s strategy
It’s too early to definitively say whether France’s strategy will work. For one thing, the government hasn’t signed it off yet. If the advice from French health authorities is followed, it will be the first country to factor in antibodies built up from having the virus as well as the vaccine; but not the first country to experiment — or stray from — the specific doses and timelines that were found to work in the vaccine trials. Early on the UK decided to postpone people’s second jab in order to vaccinate people at a faster pace: a decision which seems to have been vindicated, with increasing evidence that a delayed second dose can actually increase efficacy.
It’s surprising to see a proposal to experiment coming out of France. It wasn’t long ago that French ministers were publicly criticising the UK’s strategy. Just 12 days ago, France’s Europe minister Clément Beaune was lambasting the UK for ‘taking many risks in this vaccination campaign’, citing its decision to delay second jabs. Days before, French President Emmanuel Macron attempted to sow doubt around the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine’s effectiveness, claiming it was ‘quasi-ineffective’ in protecting over-65s from the virus. Hours later, the European Medicines Agency approved the vaccine for all adult age groups; this week the World Health Organisation recommended its use.
As experts worldwide continue to debate where people who have had the virus should fall in the vaccine queue, we can only hope a strategy of differentiating between Covid and non-Covid patients in vaccine rollouts would work. Time would soon tell. If the strategy were implemented and successful, it would be a lesson for the rest of the world to learn from, and even adopt as to expedite protection for those who haven’t had the virus. It would especially help countries similar to France, which are facing vaccine supply issues and shortages.
If the French government gives the strategy a green light, let’s hope it is vindicated. And perhaps, in the future, we can hope French politicians are slightly more cautious in criticising other responsible countries — and their public health authorities — that are contributing real-world data about vaccine effectiveness to the benefit of everyone.
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