Before the official start, there was a dispute over child vaccination.
In focus: Thomas Mertens (71), the chairman of the Standing Vaccination Commission (Stiko).
Stiko recommended vaccination of five to eleven year olds only for children with previous illnesses or children from families with high-risk patients. That alone caused criticism. A storm of indignation broke out when Mertens said in a podcast with the “FAZ” that he would “probably not have a seven or eight year old child vaccinated now”.
Now Germany’s top family doctor is jumping by him!
This “hacking around” on the Stiko boss was “not okay,” said the head of the general practitioner association, Ulrich Weigeldt, to BILD.
“The task of Stiko is to weigh up the benefits and risks of a vaccination on the basis of scientific evidence and to support what is not politically desired. Mertens did that and was simply honest at this point, “said Weigeldt and added:” From a medical point of view, I support this attitude. I cannot recommend vaccinating children across the board. I would discuss the decision openly with children aged 7 to 12. “
In view of the fierce criticism, Mertens has now publicly regretted having spoken about his private attitude towards child vaccination.
“The decision about the vaccination is really a very personal matter, and that is reflected in our current vaccination recommendation. It was probably the only mistake I made at the time that I said anything personal at all, ”Mertens told the“ WELT ”. The quote was taken out of context, according to Mertens: “But of course it is gross nonsense to call me an opponent of vaccinations.”
General practitioner boss Weigeldt is also concerned about the emotional pressure that weighs on children because of the vaccination. His hammer judgment: “Child vaccination is an attempt to close the gap that unvaccinated adults have left.”
His nine-year-old grandchild wanted to get vaccinated out of concern that the life of his grandparents would be endangered. Weigeldt: “It’s shocking when children think about it like that. So much fear was spread, so high is the pressure on this group, which should actually live carefree. “
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