COMBINING DIFFERENT VACCINES

[Anchor Lead]

As vaccine rollout gains speed in South Korea, there are studies that argue that combining two different vaccine offers greater protection against the coronavirus. The government says it will conduct clinical trials on the claim.

[Pkg]

Currently in South Korea, mixing two different types of Covid-19 vaccines, like AstraZeneca and Pfizer is not allowed. But in Germany and France, they decided last month to use the AstraZeneca for the first shot and the Pfizer jab for the second. With more countries allowing the vaccine cocktail of two different shots and more research conducted on the matter, a clinical trial is also set to begin in Korea. The Korea National Institute of Health is planning the trial on some 4- to 500 people who received the AstraZeneca vaccine as the first shot.

[Soundbite] Lee Yoo-kyung(Vaccine analysis, Central Disasters Management HQs) : "People who received the AZ shot will be given a different vaccine for the 2nd dose after which analyses will be conducted."

However authorities are more cautious on introducing the 'booster shot,' referring to a third dose to further boost immunity against the changing virus. Officials said the need for booster shots is still being reviewed by pharmaceutical firms but enough vaccines have been secured if that becomes a reality.

[Soundbite] Baek Young-ha(Vaccine procurement, Central Disasters Management HQs) : "An additional 40 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine were secured in April in preparation for teen vaccinations and possible booster shots."

Meanwhile vaccine reservations have exceeded 50% for the elderly population. Advance reservations for those aged 70 to 74 have surpassed 60% and 55% for those aged 65 to 69. However, the reservation rate for the 60 to 64 age bracket is rather low at around 40%. Vaccinations for those aged 65 and above kick off on May 27 nationwide using the AstraZeneca vaccine, and time slots for this month have been fully booked. People can still make reservations through June 3 and the faster they do it, the more likely it is to get a preferred date of their choice. To ramp up the speed of inoculations, the government is considering sending civil servants also to households with family members under the age 74 to take reservations in person. Meanwhile Health Minister Kwon Deok-cheol is departing for the US on Friday to join President Moon Jae-in on his trip to Washington. During his stay in the US, the health minister will work towards resolving vaccine issues and meet with corresponding US government and corporate officials.