No decision yet on availability of COVID-19 reminders for Alberta children
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The Alberta government says it is reviewing Health Canada’s decision to approve COVID-19 reminders for ages 5 to 11, but no decision has yet been made on when the reminders will be available in the future. province.
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Last week, Health Canada authorized a booster dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for children as young as five years old. The National Advisory Committee on Immunization has also issued a recommendation that children with underlying medical conditions should be offered a booster no sooner than six months after their second dose and that all other children in this group of age could also be offered a booster.
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Charity Wallace, spokesperson for Alberta Health, said in a statement that once a decision is made on the recalls, specific details regarding timing and availability will be shared publicly.
« As with all childhood vaccines, parents and guardians are encouraged to seek reliable, evidence-based information to inform their decisions about vaccines for their children, » she said, pointing to the government’s website. Alberta.
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According to the most recent public data, about half of eligible Albertans between the ages of 5 and 11 receive a dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.
On Friday, Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer, Dr. Theresa Tam, said the distinction between NACI’s recommendation for high-risk children and all other children – that high-risk children « should » being offered one and that others « might » have one – could change as more information is gathered.
« For all other children, the risk of serious consequences is generally rare, » she said. « I think giving people a choice and providing parents and children with information about vaccine effectiveness and the importance of recall can help them make that choice. »
At an independent news conference on Wednesday, NDP MP Irfan Sabir said booster shots are a priority for many parents in Alberta.
“Now that the COVID booster shot is available, I believe the government should take all necessary and necessary steps to ensure it is available to parents across the province,” he said.
– With files from The Canadian Press and Lisa Johnson
ajoannou@postmedia.com
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