The Ministry of National Health Services on Saturday fixed Rs1,270 as the price of a single dose of a booster shot against Covid-19 for people travelling abroad.
According to a notification issued by the ministry, the price had been fixed in pursuance of the National Command and Operation Centre’s (NCOC) decision taken during a meeting on August 24.
The notification stated booster shots would be administered to travellers at selected vaccination centres on the payment of the said amount.
It added that the payment could be deposited to the relevant account at all branches of the National Bank of Pakistan.
The decision comes as Pakistanis continue to face travel restrictions with several countries not recognising Chinese Covid-19 vaccines, which have been administered to the majority here.
In a recent development, Saudi Arabia had decided to allow entry to foreign travellers fully vaccinated with either of the two Chinese vaccines, Sinopharm or Sinovac, provided that they also received a booster shot of either of the four vaccines approved by the Kingdom.
Later, it eased Covid-19 restrictions for fully vaccinated people, allowing them to directly travel to the Kingdom from countries facing a travel ban, including Pakistan. However, the relaxation is only applicable to those who have a valid residency permit (Iqama) and left the Kingdom on an exit and re-entry visa after taking two doses of the Covid-19 vaccine from Saudi Arabia.
Earlier, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Health Dr Faisal Sultan had told a press conference on August 24 that a booster shot could be considered for frontline health workers aged above 50 after six months of their second dose.
