On Monday, the Swedish Public Health Agency recommended a fourth dose of the covid-19 vaccine to people over the age of 80, people in nursing homes and home care.

The authority said that the stick should be taken four months after the previous dose, at the earliest.

“The spread of covid-19 is still intense in Sweden. An increasing number of cases have been reported in recent weeks, including among people with an increased risk of serious illness,” the authority says.

“The immune system’s ability to respond to vaccination and build lasting protection decreases with age,” it added.

“A booster strengthens that protection,” said state epidemiologist Anders Tegnell in a statement from the authority.

In Sweden, more than 85 percent of those over 80 have received a third dose of the vaccine, as well as 55 percent of those over 18.

The Scandinavian country, which lifted all its restrictions on February 9 despite an increase in Omicron infections, made headlines early in the pandemic because they chose not to impose locks.

With more than 16,500 deaths so far, the death toll is slightly better than the European average but is much higher than in neighboring Norway, Finland and Denmark.

© 2022 AFP