“The Ministry of Health has given the guideline that vaccines can be given to pregnant women. Vaccination is useful in pregnant women, and it should be given,” ICMR Director-General Dr. Balram Bhargava said.
The Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) Director-General Dr. Balram Bhargava said on Friday that pregnant women can and should take COVID-19 vaccines, signaling a policy change that follows growing concern over the exposure of expectant mothers (and their children) to the virus, and their right to be vaccinated.
“The Ministry of Health has given the guideline that vaccines can be given to pregnant women. Vaccination is useful in pregnant women, and it should be given,” he said.
Until recently, only lactating mothers were allowed to take the jab. For pregnant women, the government had said at that time that there wasn’t enough data available on the efficacy of the vaccine in them.
While addressing a press conference on the pandemic situation in the country, Bhargava said that only one country is giving the COVID-19 vaccine to children.
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He said that a small study on children in the 2-18 age group has been conducted, and results are likely to come in by September, India Today reported,
A recent study by the ICMR revealed that pregnant and postpartum women were more severely affected during the second Covid-19 wave in India than the first, with case fatality rates and symptomatic cases being significantly higher this year.
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