Dose gap for AstraZeneca vaccine jabs extended o 16 weeks

The country will extend the gap between the first and second doses of AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine to 16 weeks in an effort to inoculate more people faster, a senior health official said.

The plan follows a similar decision by Spain to stretch the gap between two AstraZeneca doses to 16 weeks, which is beyond the 12-week maximum interval approved by the European Medicines Agency. A 16-week interval has not been tested in human trials.