Nanming rolls out COVID-19 booster shots

A medical worker from Shanshui Qiancheng Community Health Service Center in Nanming district shows a COVID-19 vaccine vial to journalists. [Photo/Guiyang news network]

Nanming district in Guiyang, capital of Southwest China's Guizhou province, has begun offering COVID-19 booster shots to people over 18 who were originally vaccinated more than six months ago, amid rising evidence of the effectiveness of an additional dose to improve immunity.

The move was officially initiated on Oct 15.

A man gets vaccinated at the Shanshui Qiancheng Community Health Service Center in Nanming district. [Photo/Guiyang news network]

Like the original vaccination jabs, the booster shots will be offered free of charge and administered on a voluntary basis. 

Key groups will be prioritized in the initial stages, including people at higher risk of contracting the virus, such as workers in cold-chain industries, customs, transportation, centralized quarantine sites, and in the health services sector, as well as to those who plan to travel abroad, people over 60 years old, and those with immunodeficiency or low immune function.

A woman has her temperature checked before receiving a COVID-19 vaccine booster shot at the Shanshui Qiancheng Community Health Service Center in Nanming district. [Photo/Guiyang news network]