Berlin: Little Children in Vienna Austrian media reported on Saturday that as part of a pilot project, coronavirus vaccines can start from next week.
Austrian broadcaster ORF reports that around 200 children between the ages of 5 and 11 can receive the jobs. Pfizer/BioNTech Vaccines have started every day in the Austrian capital from Monday. The pilot project is limited to Vienna only and does not apply to the rest of the country.
While in the United States or Israel, children in this age group may already be officially vaccinated against COVID-19, European Medicines Agency, which controls approval within The European UnionThe U.S. has not yet given the green signal to vaccinate children below 12 years of age.
The European Union’s drug regulator said earlier this week that it had begun evaluating whether to authorize Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine for children aged 5 to 11 and that it had been in the same age group since last month. Pfizer-BioNtech is evaluating a vaccine for use in the U.S.
The agency did not say when it would decide on the two vaccines, but media reported that at least for Pfizer/BioNtech, a decision could come before Christmas.
As the number of infections across the continent continues to rise at an alarming pace, the approval of vaccinations for young children will bring a much-anticipated relief to millions of EU families.
Despite the lack of official emergency approval, many pediatricians in Austria are already vaccinating children in this age group, as demand is high as infection rates in the country are rising, ORF reported.
“Interest in off-label vaccinations is enormous,” said Peter Voitl, a pediatrician and immunization specialist. Vienna Medical AssociationTold ORF. “We do vaccinations in our clinic for ages 5 to 11 and there are several hundred people on the waiting list.”
Austria has faced a worrying trend in infections in recent weeks. 13,152 new cases were reported in the country on Saturday, up from 11,798 a day earlier. The seven-day infection rate is 775.5 new cases per 100,000 residents. In comparison, the rate in neighboring Germany is 277.4, which has already sounded the alarm over the rising number.
On Friday, the Austrian government said it would enforce a lockdown next week for unvaccinated people in two hard-hit regions. The government is set to announce more nationwide virus restrictions on Sunday.
Austria has one of the lowest vaccination rates in Western Europe: about 65% of the total population has been fully vaccinated, and 67.8% have received at least one dose of the vaccine.
Austrian broadcaster ORF reports that around 200 children between the ages of 5 and 11 can receive the jobs. Pfizer/BioNTech Vaccines have started every day in the Austrian capital from Monday. The pilot project is limited to Vienna only and does not apply to the rest of the country.
While in the United States or Israel, children in this age group may already be officially vaccinated against COVID-19, European Medicines Agency, which controls approval within The European UnionThe U.S. has not yet given the green signal to vaccinate children below 12 years of age.
The European Union’s drug regulator said earlier this week that it had begun evaluating whether to authorize Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine for children aged 5 to 11 and that it had been in the same age group since last month. Pfizer-BioNtech is evaluating a vaccine for use in the U.S.
The agency did not say when it would decide on the two vaccines, but media reported that at least for Pfizer/BioNtech, a decision could come before Christmas.
As the number of infections across the continent continues to rise at an alarming pace, the approval of vaccinations for young children will bring a much-anticipated relief to millions of EU families.
Despite the lack of official emergency approval, many pediatricians in Austria are already vaccinating children in this age group, as demand is high as infection rates in the country are rising, ORF reported.
“Interest in off-label vaccinations is enormous,” said Peter Voitl, a pediatrician and immunization specialist. Vienna Medical AssociationTold ORF. “We do vaccinations in our clinic for ages 5 to 11 and there are several hundred people on the waiting list.”
Austria has faced a worrying trend in infections in recent weeks. 13,152 new cases were reported in the country on Saturday, up from 11,798 a day earlier. The seven-day infection rate is 775.5 new cases per 100,000 residents. In comparison, the rate in neighboring Germany is 277.4, which has already sounded the alarm over the rising number.
On Friday, the Austrian government said it would enforce a lockdown next week for unvaccinated people in two hard-hit regions. The government is set to announce more nationwide virus restrictions on Sunday.
Austria has one of the lowest vaccination rates in Western Europe: about 65% of the total population has been fully vaccinated, and 67.8% have received at least one dose of the vaccine.
,