Beneficial or risky move? Europe divided over vaccinating children

MILAN • As Europe starts vaccinating younger children, countries are pursuing very different strategies in what will be a major test of parents' willingness to get their kids inoculated.

One region in Italy is sending clowns and jugglers to clinics, France and Germany are targeting only the most vulnerable children, while Denmark has been administering shots even before specially designed vials and syringes have arrived.

"Vaccination must be a game, a joyful moment when children can feel at ease," said Mr Alessio D'Amato, health chief of Italy's central Lazio region, in a video as he declared Dec 15 "Vax Day" for children in the region.

The European Medicines Agency approved the use of Pfizer-BioNTech's lower-dose vaccine for the five-to-11 age group last month, following the go-ahead for older children in May. Timings for the roll-out vary, but most countries are preparing to start getting shots into young arms a day or two after the first shipments arrive.

Belgium may not start its roll-out until early next month while the national authorities prepare to issue guidance. Spain, which ranks among the world's most highly immunised countries, with 90 per cent of people aged 12 or over fully vaccinated, will start inoculating younger children tomorrow.

Inoculating children and young people, who can unwittingly transmit Covid-19 to others at higher risk of serious illness, is considered a critical step towards taming the pandemic.

In Germany and the Netherlands, children now account for the majority of cases. The roll-out comes as the European Union battles a major wave of infections, accounting for well over half of global infections and 50 per cent of deaths globally.

Some 27 million five-to 11-year-olds are eligible for the vaccine in the bloc of about 450 million.

A major hurdle will be winning over parents.

In the Netherlands, 42 per cent of almost 1,800 parents with children in the five-to-12 age range said they would not get their children inoculated, and 12 per cent said they would probably decline, according to a poll by Dutch current affairs television programme Een Vandaag.

Only 30 per cent said they would get their children vaccinated.

A survey in Italy by polling firm Noto Sondaggi published on Dec 5 found that almost two-thirds of those surveyed backed vaccinations, but the percentage dropped to 40 per cent among parents with children aged five to 12.

A lack of data on the effects on children was given as the main reason for the hesitancy, while a third thought that children would be less likely to get infected, and 9 per cent were worried about long-term side effects.

The United States roll-out has been sluggish since it started last month. Of the 28 million eligible US children in that age group, around five million have received at least one dose.

Some parents have been concerned about reports of heart inflammation, a rare vaccine side effect seen in young men at higher rates than in the rest of the population.

Last week, the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said it had not found any reports of the condition among five-to 11-year-old recipients of the vaccine.

No serious safety concerns related to the vaccine have been identified in clinical trials, Pfizer and BioNTech have said.

Dr Luigi Greco, a paediatrician and Lombardy regional manager for training in the Italian family paediatricians' union, said: "The data shows that it is safe, effective, and with results very similar to those for older children."

Still, some governments are limiting the roll-out until there is more data available. In France, only children who are overweight or who have a serious health condition will be offered access to vaccination, to start with.

Germany's vaccination advisory commission Stiko said it could not make a general recommendation for the vaccine due to limited data available. It recommended that children aged five to 11 with pre-existing conditions be given a shot.

Some health authorities are using vaccines in stock for adults, but extracting only a third of the dose.

When the Austrian capital Vienna last month opened the first 9,200 slots for inoculating children, all the appointments were booked within days.

Denmark followed suit on Nov 28, saying there was no time to lose. After less than two weeks, more than 49,000 children aged six to 11 had received their first shot, around 13 per cent of that age group.

REUTERS

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Countries take different approaches in giving out shots

European nations are adopting different approaches in the vaccination of younger children amid hesitation among some parents.

The European Medicines Agency last month approved the use of Pfizer-BioNTech's lower-dose vaccine for the five-to-11 age group.

•France and Germany are vaccinating only the most vulnerable children.

•Germany's Saxony state, among the hardest hit by Covid-19 infections, has started vaccinating at-risk children under 12.

•Denmark started inoculating children even before the arrival of specially designed vials and syringes.

•Belgium may roll out vaccinations for children only early next month as it awaits guidance from the national authorities.

•Spain will start inoculating younger children tomorrow.

•Austria's capital Vienna opened the first 9,200 children's vaccine slots last month, with all appointments taken up within days.

•A survey in Italy found that almost two-thirds of people agree with vaccinations, but this proportion dropped to 40 per cent among parents with children aged between five and 12.

•To entertain and engage children while they get jabbed, the regional authority in Liguria, Italy, created a cartoon superhero called Captain Vaccine who carries a doctor's bag and dons a white coat with a big "V" printed on his chest.

REUTERS