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 By Maayan Lubell
JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel's Health Ministry has identified fewer
than 10 cases of heart inflammation following a third dose of the
Pfizer/BioNtech vaccine among millions administered, according to
recently released data.
Israel began administering boosters to risk groups in July and by
the end of August expanded its campaign to include anyone above the
age of 12, five months or more after a second dose.
Having kicked off its rapid vaccination drive relatively early, in
December, Israel was one of the first countries to report that the
vaccine's protection diminished with time, and has since deemed its
booster campaign safe and effective.
The booster drive is being watched closely in the United States,
where third Pfizer shots have been rolled out for those 65 and
older, all people at high risk of severe disease, and others who are
regularly exposed to the virus.
In data published late on Thursday, the Health Ministry reported
nine cases of myocarditis within four age groups that comprised more
than 1.5 million people who had received a booster shot.
All were male, three were between the ages of 16 and 29 and six were
in the 30-59 group. Eight more possible cases were still being
reviewed. Most myocarditis cases are generally mild, the ministry
said.
In total, out of all 3.2 million Israelis who have received a third
jab, 25 reported serious adverse events that appeared within 30 days
of the shot, including myocarditis, though a causal link had yet to
be established among many of them.
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 Employing a "living with COVID"
strategy, the government is hoping that the
boosters, so far administered to around a third
of the 9.3 million population, will fend off an
outbreak of the Delta variant while the economy
is kept open.
Since Delta began spreading in June, the
government has reimposed indoor mask wearing and
Israelis require a Green Pass - a digital
document that confirms full immunisation,
including a third shot, or recovery from the
illness - to enter most places of leisure.
Teachers must either be vaccinated or get tested
in order to enter schools.
 The
number of COVID-19 patients hospitalised in serious condition has
been dropping in recent days, as has the number of confirmed daily
cases, which now stand at around 4,000, compared with around 8,000 a
month ago.
But experts are concerned that, with schools reopening this week
after the Jewish high holiday season, illness will shoot up again.
They have urged the government to take more steps to rein in
infections, such as limiting large crowds, and not to rely on
boosters alone.
(Editing by Ari Rabinovitch and Giles Elgood)
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