Covid jabs for kids: your questions answered
Australian primary school-aged kids will be eligible for Covid vaccines before the 2022 school year starts. Here’s what you need to know about jabs for kids aged 5-11.
Following two years of interrupted schooling, sporting activities and being shut off from friendship networks, from early next year, Aussie kids will be able to roll up their sleeves and receive the Covid-19 vaccine.
Australia’s medical regulator, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) and vaccine expert advisory group ATAGI have approved the Pfizer vaccine for children aged 5 to 11.
The Australian government will start rolling out the vaccine to primary schoolers from January 10, before the start of the 2022 school year.
Here’s everything we know so far.
Which vaccine will our kids be getting?
The vaccine approved by the TGA for kids aged 5 to 11 is exactly the same Pfizer vaccine that has been rolled out to millions of Australian adults but a much smaller dose, TGA head Professor John Skerritt has told a press conference in Melbourne.
“It’s one-third the dose, because like medicines, often with vaccines you get off with the smaller dose for younger children,” Prof Skerritt says.
To prevent any mix-ups, children’s doses will be distributed to vaccine providers in different packaging to adult doses and will come with orange caps rather than purple or grey.
Like adults, kids will require two doses of the vaccine.
ATAGI has recommended an eight-week interval between shots, which may be shortened to three weeks in special circumstances such as an outbreak.
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Why do kids need to be vaccinated?
While the Covid-19 virus is generally a milder illness in children, vaccinating them can help reduce transmission.
“A bit over a fifth of all cases of Covid are actually in the under 12s,” Prof Skerritt says.
“And, indeed, some of the earlier data with Omicron suggests that that may actually be higher for (the) Omicron variant,” he says.
“So, our under 12s who are currently unvaccinated do catch Covid.”
Federal Minister for Health Greg Hunt said approval of the vaccine gives parents and carers more options to protect their children.
“Australians can be reassured that by vaccinating their children against Covid-19 they have done everything possible to keep their child safe from this virus,” Mr Hunt said.
“Vaccinating children can also help reduce community transmission and help prevent children passing the virus on to younger siblings, grandparents and the wider community.”
Prof Skerritt says about one in 3000 children who contract Covid also pick up an immunological condition called multisystem inflammatory condition, which can leave them ill for months.
Co-director at the Centre for Virus Research at The Westmead Institute for Medical Research Professor Sarah Palmer says children are also at risk from long Covid, which can lead to long-term shortness of breath, fatigue and neurological issues.
“In the US, 1.9 million children between the age of five and 11 have been infected with Covid,” Prof Palmer says.
“Vaccinating gives both children and parents peace of mind and helps stop the transmission of the virus to other family members. I think it’s very exciting news.”
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Is the vaccine effective for kids?
In a word: yes.
Prof Skerritt says the vaccine has been extensively clinically tested.
“It was tested in a trial of almost 2500 children aged five to 11, and in that trial over 1500 received a vaccine,” he says.
“The response of the body, the immune response, was identical to that in young adults.
“More recently, there’s actually been results published in one of the world’s top three medical journals, the top American medical journal, the New England Journal of Medicine.
“In that journal, the result showed 91 per cent vaccine efficacy.
“The efficacy is essentially the same in adults as it is in this group, so we’re confident in the performance.”
Is the vaccine safe for kids?
Prof Skerritt says no safety problems were identified in the trials.
“The children had some of the same things that adults get – tiredness, sore arms, headache and so forth – but these tended to be brief and fairly short-lived.”
While a small number of adolescents and young adults have experienced mild cases of heart inflammation (called myocarditis) following the Covid-19 vaccine, scientists believe the protection offered to kids by the vaccine outweighs the risks.
“Most (young people who experienced myocarditis) recovered on their own or with minimal treatment and rest,” Monash University virologist Dr Vinod Balasubramaniam says.
“However, ongoing research shows people who became infected with Covid-19 have a greater risk of developing this potential side effect than those who receive the vaccine.
“Unvaccinated children have 37 times higher chance of developing myocarditis when infected with Covid-19 than uninfected peers.”
Where can kids get their vaccine and how do I book?
Mr Hunt says the government has been working closely with Pfizer, vaccine providers and states and territories to ensure that all Australian children will have access to the vaccine as a priority.
It’s expected the vaccine will initially be made available through general practices, community pharmacies, Aboriginal health services and state and territory clinics.
Bookings can be made from December 15 through Vaccine Clinic Finder.
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What’s next in the vaccination rollout?
The TGA is now evaluating an application from Moderna for its Covid-19 vaccine to be used in Australia for children aged 6 to 11.
Pfizer is running two separate studies on how its vaccine works in children aged under 5.
Written by Liz McGrath.
Updated December 10, 2021.
