Many universities in the US are asking Indian students who have taken Covaxin or Sputnik V to re-vaccinate with WHO-approved vaccines before the fall semester begins.
Universities in the USA are asking Indian students who have taken Covaxin or Sputnik V to vaccinate again with WHO-approved vaccines before the start of the fall semester. (Photo: file)
Universities in the US are urging students to re-vaccinate if they have been vaccinated with vaccines for Covid-19 that are not yet approved by the World Health Organization. These include Indian students who have taken Covaxin from Bharat Biotech or the Russian vaccine Sputnik V.
US universities cite a lack of data on the effectiveness and safety of these vaccines as the reason for this. The affected students are requested to be vaccinated again before the start of the autumn semester.
SAFETY WHEN TAKING 2 DIFFERENT VACCINES
But these students are worried about that Safety of Taking Two Different Vaccines.
Milloni Doshi, 25, will join Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs. She has already been given two doses of Covaxin in India. The university has advised her to re-vaccinate herself with a different vaccine when she arrived on campus, the New York Times reported.
“I’m just worried about taking two different vaccines. They said the application process would be the hardest part of the cycle, but it was really all that was unsafe and scary,” Doshi was quoted as saying.
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On the matter, Spokeswoman for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Kristen Nordlund told the New York Times: “Because Covid-19 vaccines are not interchangeable, the safety and effectiveness of taking two different vaccines have not been studied. “
Nordlund said those who have already been given WHO-approved vaccines will have to wait 28 days before receiving their first dose of a WHO-approved vaccine in the US.
The vaccines previously approved by the WHO include those of the US pharmaceutical companies Pfizer Inc, Moderna Inc and Johnson & Johnson.
EFFECTS OF THIS DECISION
The process of compulsory revaccination with WHO-approved vaccines for students is likely to hurt the revenues of US universities, which generate approximately $ 39 billion in tuition fees each year.
About 2 lakh Indian students attend US universities each year. Many of them are now finding it difficult to schedule appointments to be vaccinated with their university-approved vaccines. They are concerned about the impact this new rule could have on their future plans.
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