Inoculating children aged 5-11 meaningful: Pediatric society

Jiji Press

16:34 JST, January 20, 2022

TOKYO (Jiji Press) — The Japan Pediatric Society offered the view Wednesday that vaccinating children aged 5-11 against COVID-19 would be meaningful.

The society said in a statement that novel coronavirus vaccines “are expected to prevent children with underlying health conditions from developing severe COVID-19 symptoms.”

But it did not mention whether the government should impose an obligation to make best efforts to inoculate five- to 11-year-old children based on the vaccination law.

Vaccinating healthy children aged 5-11 against COVID-19 is as meaningful as inoculating older people, the statement also said.

The society specifically pointed out that in the United States children in that age group showed fewer cases of adverse reactions than the other generations.

Still, it asked parents of children with underlying conditions to consult with their doctors in advance over the health management after the vaccination.