Germany's Standing Committee on Vaccination has dropped its recommendation for a baseline Covid-19 vaccination for healthy adults, saying broad immunity across the population and declining severe outcomes no longer justify the guidance. More than 95 percent of adults now carry robust immunity from prior infections or earlier vaccine doses, and hospital admissions and deaths linked to the virus have fallen steadily since the pandemic's end.
The previous guidance calling for at least three exposures to the virus for basic immunity is no longer in effect, and the recommendation for women of childbearing age and pregnant women without underlying conditions has also been scrapped.
Annual booster shots are now recommended only for people aged 75 and older, up from the previous threshold of 60. Boosters remain advised for individuals with pre-existing conditions, residents and staff of care facilities, and intensive-care medical personnel.