The city of Berlin, Greece, Spain and Hungary are starting on Wednesday vaccination campaigns against COVID-19 for children under 12, an age group among the most exposed to current contamination.
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Vaccination of 5-11 year olds, with a version of the Pfizer vaccine less strong than that intended for adults, has been possible in the European Union since its authorization by the drug regulator on November 25.
Denmark and Austria have already taken the plunge. In Germany, where opponents of vaccination remain mobilized, several regions, including the capital Berlin and Bavaria, are launching Wednesday.
At the Berlin pediatrician Jakob Maske, several parents have already made an appointment, but many also call “for advice,” he told AFPTV.
Zoo and museum
A few days before the end of the year holidays and after weeks of procrastination from the German vaccine commission, these “Länder” have chosen to recommend the vaccination of children with risk factors or whose family and friends present co-morbidities.
Children will receive two shots of the vaccine over a three to six week period. Pharmacy wholesalers have received around 2.2 million doses reserved for this young audience.
In addition to vaccination among pediatricians and general practitioners, large-scale actions are planned at the Berlin Zoo and the Natural History Museum, or in schools.
With a virulent fourth wave and explosion rates among children in some localities, the vaccine commission has drawn criticism for the slowness and reluctance of its recommendations, issued only a few days ago.
With vaccination of children, “there is a much better chance of keeping the school running for as long as possible”, notes the president of the German Teachers’ Association, Heinz-Peter Meidinger.
The World Health Organization (WHO) itself observes that the age groups between 5 and 14 are currently the most affected by the pandemic, sometimes with rates two to three times higher than in the rest of the world. population.
Hungary will also launch its campaign for 5-11 year olds on Wednesday.
In Greece, more than 20,000 parents have made an appointment to have their child vaccinated also from Wednesday.
“Like grandpa and grandma”
Spain, one of the good pupils of vaccination in Europe, is also opening the campaign of injections to 5-11 year olds, in the hope of fighting against the upsurge in contamination among young people and the transmission of the virus in the family environment. .
According to the authorities, 3.3 million children are likely to benefit from the vaccination. “At present, children under 12 are the age group with the highest cumulative incidence of Covid-19 cases,” recalls the Spanish Ministry of Health.
Even if there is more indecision than during the adult vaccination campaign, 74% of parents plan to have their child vaccinated, according to a survey.
A government television campaign features children rejoicing that it is “their turn” to be vaccinated to act like “grandpa and grandma, papa and mama, auntie and uncle, the mistress” and to be able to “kiss without limits, help put an end to this virus and protect the elderly ”.
Other European countries, such as Italy, Poland, the Baltic countries or even Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Portugal and Switzerland will start their campaign in the coming days.
Outside of Europe, Canada and the United States or even, Israel has also authorized the vaccination of children as young. China, Chile, Argentina, Venezuela and Colombia vaccinate children from 3 years old, Cuba and Nicaragua from 2 years old.
In France, only the vaccination of children at risk of developing serious forms has been approved, but the government has said it is considering extending it “to all children” on a voluntary basis.
These campaigns start when the WHO warned Tuesday that the Omicron variant is spreading “at a rate that we have never seen with any other variant”, and said to fear a saturation of hospitals.
The pandemic made at least 5 .311. 914 million deaths in the world since the end of 2019, according to a report established by AFP from official sources, Tuesday in the middle of the day.
The United States, officially the country most bereaved by the pandemic, exceeded 800,000 deaths from Covid-19 on Tuesday, according to the report from Johns Hopkins University. This number is greater than the population of entire US states, such as North Dakota or Alaska.