They recommended that the second dose of the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine be administered between three and twelve weeks after the first dose, and that the second dose of the AstraZeneca (Oxford) vaccine be administered between four and 12 weeks after the first dose. can be.
The priority order for clinical risks for the deployment of the vaccines remains unchanged and applies to both vaccines.
However, the British Medical Association said the extension after 12 weeks was “difficult to justify” and that it should change after six weeks.
The doctors’ union said the British strategy was “increasingly isolated internationally” and in a letter to Professor Whitty urged that the gap be changed.
BMA Council Chairman Dr Chaand Nagpaul said: “What we are saying is that the UK should apply this best practice based on international professional opinion.”