Since December 2021, all children aged 5 to 11 have been offered vaccination against COVID-19. At the time, the Health Council recommended doing this to protect against MIS-C, a rare but very serious disease that can occur after a SARS-CoV-2 infection. The number of 5 to 11 year olds still at risk for MIS-C is very limited. In the meantime, about 95 percent of them have experienced a SARS-CoV-2 infection, and MIS-C hardly occurs in a subsequent infection. In addition, the risk of MIS-C after infection with the omikron variant is much smaller than after infection with earlier variants of the virus. The chance of serious COVID-19 is also smaller with the omikron variant than with previous variants. For most children aged 5 to 11, the burden of disease due to COVID-19 is now limited. This means that the usefulness of vaccination is now also limited for them, according to the Health Council.
For children with an increased risk of a serious course of COVID-19, vaccination is still useful, according to the Council, because it can lower the risk of being admitted to hospital. The Health Council therefore recommends that vaccination against COVID-19 be offered only to risk groups of 5 to 11-year-olds. This concerns, for example, children with a heart disorder, an immune disorder, a lung disorder (other than asthma), diabetes mellitus, obesity or a neurological disorder. This advice also applies to revaccination against COVID-19.
Repeat shot
In the opinion of the Council, children who have already received the first 2 injections only need to be invited for a repeat injection if they fall into a risk group. The Council can imagine that in exceptional cases, parents may also want to vaccinate children without an increased medical risk, for example to reduce the risk of infection among vulnerable household members. Vaccination should also be available in those cases. The council emphasizes that it is important that understandable information is available to parents, so that they can make a well-considered and well-informed choice. In addition to monovalent, bivalent vaccines are currently available for both children and adults. The Council does not express a preference for a monovalent or bivalent mRNA vaccine for primary vaccination and recommends leaving the choice to the implementing organization.
By: National Care Guide