E-Paper
UK to administer Covid-19 vaccines to healthy 16- and 17-year-olds
The decision comes after the UK’s Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) issued a recommendation that healthy teenagers aged 16 and 17 should be administered the first dose of Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, which has been approved by Britain’s medical regulator for use for anyone aged 12 and above.
The United Kingdom government announced on Wednesday that it will administer vaccines against the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) to all healthy children between the ages of 16 and 17.
The decision comes after the UK’s Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) issued a recommendation that healthy teenagers aged 16 and 17 should be administered the first dose of Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, which has been approved by Britain’s medical regulator for use for anyone aged 12 and above. The new rollout will include 1.4 million teenagers across the UK.
“In the last few weeks, there have been large changes in the way Covid-19 has been spreading in the UK, particularly in younger age groups. The adult vaccine programme has progressed very successfully and more safety data has become available, so it was important to review the advice for the vaccination of children and young people,” a statement issued by Public health England said on Wednesday. It added that young people will get 80% protection against hospitalisations, after being inoculated with the first vaccine dose.
Health experts have welcomed the decision by saying it is an important step for protecting the young and reducing the transmission of Covid-19
Accepting the JCVI’s recommendation on vaccinating young people aged 16 and above, health secretary Sajid Javid said on Wednesday that he has instructed the National Health Service (NHS) to prepare to vaccinate those eligible at the earliest.
However, the vaccination committee has not yet recommended administering doses to children below 16 years. “JCVI will continue to review data and provide updates on at-risk groups aged 12-15 and whether any additional groups will be added,” Sajid said in a statement. At present, the UK has only approved vaccination of children above 12 years only with an underlying health condition or who live with a vulnerable person.
Other countries in Europe, including France and Germany, and also the United States have already approved inoculations for children above 12 years.
As of Wednesday, authorities in the UK have vaccinated 85,661,367 beneficiaries so far of which nearly 47 million have received the first dose and the remaining 38,733,334 are fully vaccinated, according to the bulletin shared by the Department of Health and Social Care.
(With agency inputs)
