Interval between Covid vaccines shorter; scheduled appointments can’t be changed

Starting on Monday, the interval between two shots with an mRNA Covid-19 vaccine at the GGD will be shortened from 35 days to 28 days, the GGD GHOR told NOS.

Health Minister, Hugo de Jonge, already announced on Friday that the interval between two doses of a Moderna vaccine would be reduced to 28 days and for Pfizer, the waiting period would only take 21 days. The GGD has now decided to stick with 28 days for both because this is a minimum interval for the Moderna vaccine and no distinction is made when scheduling vaccinations between the two.

It is not possible to reschedule an already made appointment. “There are currently insufficient vaccines available for this”, a GGD spokesperson said.

There have been rumors circulating online that is possible to get a second dose of a coronavirus vaccine without an appointment. These stories are false, the GGD emphasized. “If people were able to get a second dose without an appointment, this went against the rules”, the spokesperson said.

It is possible for people to receive their first dose of a Covid-19 vaccine without an appointment at the GGD Amsterdam. “That is a new policy we introduced to persuade as many people as possible to get vaccinated, but this is not feasable for the second shot”, the spokesperson stated. The GGD Amsterdam was the first region to introduce vaccinations without an appointment. Each region can decide for itself if they want to implement a similar strategy.