UK to rule out Covid vaccinations for children | Vaccines and immunization

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The UK government’s vaccine watchdog has decided there is not enough evidence to recommend the release of Covid vaccines for all people aged 12 to 15, but has kept out the possibility that ministers will seek further advice going forward with that.

But the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunization (JCVI) has recommended expanding the pool of children with health conditions that put them at clinical risk. They should receive two doses of the Pfizer vaccine, as they are more likely to contract the virus.

With only a rate of two per million healthy children requiring intensive care for Covid, the marginal benefit of vaccinating them was “insufficient to support a universal supply” of vaccines for the age group, the commission said.

One problem is the very small risk of developing myocarditis, a form of heart inflammation, in children who receive the vaccine. While this is extremely rare, and children tend to recover quickly, there has been uncertainty about any long-term effects, with more research needed.

However, the JCVI left ministers – who are under heavy pressure to start vaccinating children as schools return in England this week – with the option of eliminating oversight.

The JCVI’s decision indicates that it is not within its remit to consider broader issues such as disruption of education and the transfer of society more broadly, and it agreed that ministers could seek advice on this matter elsewhere.

Top medical officials in the four countries in the UK will be asked to give their opinions, in hopes of shaping UK-wide policy.

It is understood that the JCVI made the decision by a majority vote on Thursday, after lengthy discussions and debates.

Next week, the organization will look at the separate issue of “enhanced” third stabs, and whether they should be universal or target only the elderly or the most clinically vulnerable.

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