Covid-19 vaccine rollout: Younger teens eligible for Pfizer ‘by end of the year’

The government’s expert immunisation panel on Friday gave the green light to the age cohort receiving the Pfizer vaccine, moving the minimum age from 16 to 12.

A vial of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine. Picture: AFP

All Australian children aged 12-15 will be able to receive a Covid-19 vaccine by the end of the year, in a significant boost to the nation’s rollout.

The government’s expert ­immunisation panel on Friday gave the green light to the children receiving the Pfizer vaccine, moving the minimum age from 16 to 12. Bookings open from September 13 and will be available through GPs, Aboriginal community-controlled health centres, commonwealth and state-run vaccination centres and school-based programs.

Since the start of the month, vulnerable children in the 12-15 age group, including Indigenous children and those with under­lying health conditions, have been eligible to receive a vaccination.

Health Minister Greg Hunt said the updated advice was an “extremely important” next step in Australia’s vaccination rollout.

Education Minister Alan Tudge said it would give “peace of mind” to kids, parents and teachers as schools in NSW, the ACT and Victoria prepared to reopen.

The government confirmed the Moderna vaccine could also be administered to teenagers if it was registered by the Therapeutic Goods Administration and recommended by the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation. Despite Pfizer supplies remaining tight, the Morrison government said every family who wanted their adolescent to be vaccinated could do so before the end of the year.

Scott Morrison also flagged there were “promising leads” about doses for the age cohort.

The Prime Minister said the updated advice would make it possible for families to be vaccinated at the same time. “I would see that happening especially through the GP network, and that provides the opportunity for family vaccinations, for the family to go along together across those age groups,” he said.

ATAGI said the benefits of ­offering vaccinations to younger adolescents outweighed known or potential risks. It also said it would help reduce disruption to their education by preventing disease.

“Covid-19 epidemiology in this age group is rapidly evolving, with younger age groups more implicated in transmission in the context of Delta,” it said.

“With older age groups ­increasingly protected by vaccination, a greater proportion of Covid-19 is anticipated to occur in adolescents and children.”

Some premiers had called for children to be included in the vaccination targets that are tied to the staged easing of restrictions across the country. The Doherty Institute’s modelling, which underpins the ­national plan, is based on vaccinations of those 16 and over.

But Mr Morrison said there was no medical advice to include 12 to 15-year-olds in the national targets. “Inclusion in the target does not mean they shouldn’t be vaccinated. The target is about the overall level of vaccination in the adult population, which are the primary transmitters of the virus.”

Of Australians over 16, 33 per cent are fully vaccinated and 56 per cent have received a first dose.