EU countries will receive corona vaccines for children aged 5 to 11 as early as December 13, the German Ministry of Health reports. That is a week earlier than planned and therefore also means that countries can start rolling out the vaccination campaign for young children more quickly.
The vaccine used is that of Pfizer/BioNTech, already available for children from 12 years old. The manufacturer has informed Germany that deliveries to the EU are taking place earlier than initially expected. The country itself receives 2.4 million doses.
“Given the current corona situation, this is good news for parents and children. Many are eagerly looking forward to this”, says health minister Jens Spahn.
Younger children are given a smaller dose. That is 10 instead of 30 micrograms per shot, with a three-week waiting period between the two doses. According to researchers, this is possible because children produce as many antibodies as adults do with a full dose.
The European Medicines Agency (EMA) approved the drug last week for children aged 5 to 11 years. According to the experts, the vaccine’s benefits outweigh the risk of the usually mild side effects for this age group, too.