An expert committee in Singapore will make a recommendation on extending the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccination to children at 5 to 11 years of age. This is reported to be in the second half of November.
On Monday (8 November), Health Minister, Ong Ye Kung, said that the vaccine is beneficial for children of this age group.
Singapore To Decide On COVID-19 Vaccination For Kids Aged 5 To 11 Years In November
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The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently authorised the Pfizer vaccination for children aged 5 to 11 years. This was also noted by Mr Ong while speaking at a press conference on Monday.
The US FDA’s decision was made after Pfizer conducted a clinical trial and recommended that this age group receive one-third of the full adult dosage. It was also noted that these children will still get two separate doses.
As per The Straits Times, Mr Ong shared that the US study concluded that vaccination is safe and effective for kids of this age group. This is based on the reduced dosage of the vaccine’s adult formulation.
Studies Show COVID-19 Vaccination Is “Beneficial” For Young Children
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The minister, who co-chairs the multi-ministry task force tackling COVID-19, also shared how Singapore’s Expert Committee on COVID-19 Vaccination (EC19V) has studied their data on the issue.
They assessed that overall, it is beneficial for children aged 5 to 11 years old to get vaccinated. This is especially given the ongoing community transmission.
The Ministry of Health (MOH) will also be conducting a study with a few hundred children in the same age range. The study is to understand the suitability of a smaller dosage of the vaccine for children in Singapore.
Mr Ong says the ministry will work out ways to administer the vaccine smoothly before scaling up the vaccination programme.
“We are pushing ahead with vaccination for children aged five to 11 years as soon as we can once the EC19V has finalised their recommendation and given the go-ahead. And this is so that parents have the added assurance and peace of mind that their children can become protected,” said the minister as reported by ST.
When Vaccinations Extend To This Age Group, Only A Small Proportion Of The Population Would Not Be Vaccinated
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Once vaccination is extended for children of ages 5 to 11 years, only a small proportion of the population would not be covered by vaccines. Mr Ong says this leaves those who choose not to be vaccinated and kids under five years old.
For infants and children aged four and under, MOH will continue to monitor the vaccine suitable for this age group. It was also noted that the virus tends to affect this group less seriously.
He adds that children who choose not to be vaccinated will be subject to vaccine-differentiated measures such as dining in restrictions.
Singapore’s director of medical services Kenneth Mark says inoculating this group of children will increase vaccination rates “well above” the current 86 per cent. He notes how this will then allow Singapore to open up its economy further.
He adds that MOH will be studying how to efficiently extract the required doses for children.
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