Sharjah24 – Reuters: Germany's expert panel on vaccine use (STIKO) on Thursday recommended Novavax's protein-based COVID-19 vaccine for basic immunisation for people over 18.

It said a booster shot should be given with an mRNA vaccine, and particularly vulnerable people should also receive a second booster with an mRNA vaccine.

Novavax's vaccine uses a different technology than the mRNA vaccines from Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna or the Johnson and Johnson shot.

This could convince reluctant Germans, sceptical about the novel mRNA technology and its long-term effects, to take Novavax's more traditional vaccine and boost Germany's vaccination rate.

Germany expects to receive 3.8 million doses of Novavax's Nuvaxovid vaccine by March 20 and a total of 34 million doses this year.

STIKO also updated its general recommendation for booster shots and now advises at-risk people and health workers to get a second booster jab against the coronavirus with an mRNA vaccine.

The recommendation comes amid surging coronavirus infections in the country of 83 million.

The Robert-Koch-Institute for infectious diseases reported a record of 236,120 new cases on Thursday.

Health Minister Karl Lauterbach has warned the numbers could exceed 400,000 by mid-February.