Taiwan's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) decided Thursday to hold off on vaccinating 5-11-year-olds against COVID-19 and administering booster shots to the 12-17 age group, though it approved use of the Moderna vaccine for the latter's first and second vaccination shots.
Experts on the ACIP think that at present, there is insufficient information to determine whether 5-11-year-olds should be vaccinated, Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (???) told reporters after the ACIP concluded its meeting on the topic.
More observation is needed for the ACIP to make its decision, Chen said, adding that the ACIP will continue to monitor data from other countries.
It is still possible that the age group could be approved for vaccination in the future, Chen said.
No one aged 5-11 who has contracted COVID-19 in Taiwan has developed severe symptoms as a result, Chen said.
The ACIP also decided in its meeting to hold off on giving booster shots to the 12-17 age group, citing the need for more information as well, Chen said.
If booster shots are administered to this age group in the future, the minimum interval between their second and third dose would be five or six months to minimize the risk of severe side effects, longer than the three-month interval for adults, Chen said.
Also during its Thursday meeting, the ACIP approved those in the 12-17 age group receiving the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine as their first or second dose, becoming the second vaccine in Taiwan, after the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, to be approved for the age group, Chen said.
Like the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, those in the age group should get a second dose after a minimum interval of 12 weeks, Chen said.
Adolescents can mix-and-match the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccine, he added.
Chen declined to give a timeline as to when the Moderna vaccine would be made available to adolescents, saying that the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) still needs to discuss the issue with local governments.
According to the latest CECC data, 89.1 percent of 12-17-year olds have gotten a first vaccine dose, and 80.9 percent have received a second dose.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel