Trending Politics
The United Kingdom’s Health Security Agency is putting an end to Covid-19 vaccinations for young, healthy children aged 5-to-11 years old.
Any child who turns five after August 2022 can no longer receive a COVID vaccine until they are 12, unless they are “clinically vulnerable.” The U.K.’s Green Book for medical practitioners states:
This one-off programme applies to those aged 5 to 11 years, including those who turn five years of age before the end of August 2022.
The U.K. Green Book’s rationale for ending the program of vaccination for most children 5-11 is refreshing in light of U.S. reportage on the subject:
In February 2022, the JCVI advised a one-off, non-urgent programme to offer vaccination to all children aged five to 11 years of age who are not in a clinical risk group. The immediate benefits of vaccination in this age group are likely to be small because children are at low risk from COVID-19 infection, and by February 2022 almost all children in this age group will already have been infected with COVID-19. Although Omicron infection appears to be particularly mild, and the vaccine induced protection against mild Omicron infection is short lived, the offer is intended to increase and broaden protection against severe COVID-19 in advance of a potential future wave of COVID-19. As this offer is non-urgent, JCVI has recommended that delivery of pediatric non-COVID-19 immunization programmes across all ages should receive due attention.
