Coronavirus: Third jab for severely immunosuppressed children aged 12 to 18

The booster jab against coronavirus will start being administered to children aged 12 and over who are severely immunosuppressed, the health ministry announced on Friday.

The decision to extend the lower the age limit for the booster shot from 18 to 12 years was taken by the national vaccination advisory body after evaluating the data and reports of the European Medicines Agency, the ministry’s announcement said.

It reminded the booster is only administered with mRNA technology vaccines, namely Moderna or Pfizer.

People aged 12 and over can receive the third jab at a minimum of 28 days after their most recent vaccine dose.

Severely immunocompromised persons include those who had solid organ transplantation, hematopoietic cell transplantation or are waiting for transplantation, as well as those with kidney failure undergoing dialysis or peritoneal dialysis, those with cancer under treatment and people with solid organ cancer undergoing treatment and the treatment includes chemotherapy, radiation therapy, immunotherapy, or other types of therapy.

The list also concerns persons with haematological cancer in the last five years or anyone with autoinflammatory, autoimmune, or other immunosuppressive diseases, receiving specific immunomodulatory therapies, as well as persons with primary immunodeficiencies or persons with HIV infection who have a CD4 count below 200. People prescribed drugs that cause immunodeficiency such as active use of biologic agents including TNF inhibitors, interleukin inhibitors or other immunosuppressive drugs, such as active chronic use of corticosteroids 20mg of prednisone or its equivalent for one month.

On the day of vaccination, people must present a medical certificate proving they fall into the above categories of patients.