Starting October 25, Spain will begin administering a third dose of the COVID - 19 vaccines developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna to the over-70 population. The decision was reached by Spain’s Public Health Commission, which is made up of the Health Ministry and representatives from the regions.

The agreement came one day after the European Union’s drug regulator, the European Medicines Agency (EMA), opened the door for a third shot of the Pfizer vaccine to be administered to the adult population.

The EMA, however, indicated that there is still little evidence of the effectiveness of booster shots among people with normal immune systems. With respect to a third dose of the Moderna vaccine, the regulator has not yet made a decision, although it is likely to do so in the coming days. The EMA also stated in its decision on Monday that an extra dose of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines could be given to people with severely weakened immune systems - a step Spain, and several other EU countries, have already taken.