"When Can Our Child Get Vaccinated?"... The Key Issue Is the 'Eligible Vaccination Age'

A homeroom teacher is measuring the temperature of students who have arrived at an elementary school in Seoul. Photo by Joint Press Corps

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Chun-hee] With the full return to in-person classes for kindergarten, elementary, middle, and high school students starting from the second semester, attention is turning to whether COVID-19 vaccinations will be administered to minors. However, among the vaccines currently introduced in South Korea, only the Pfizer vaccine is approved for minors, making it uncertain to what extent vaccinations for minors will be carried out within this year.

Recently, the Ministry of Education announced its plan to implement full in-person classes for all grades in kindergartens, elementary, middle, and high schools starting from the second semester. COVID-19 vaccinations are currently being administered to health and special education teachers, and vaccinations for teachers of kindergarten, daycare centers, and grades 1-2 in elementary schools are set to begin on the 7th of next month. If vaccinations for all school staff are completed before the start of the second semester, this scenario is quite feasible.

However, there are still no plans for COVID-19 vaccinations for students other than high school seniors (Grade 12). According to the current vaccination plan by health authorities, the only plan for minors is to vaccinate high school seniors taking the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) with the Pfizer vaccine during the summer vacation.

The reason for this vaccination gap among minors is that most COVID-19 vaccines currently available are not approved for use in minors. There are three vaccines authorized in South Korea: AstraZeneca (AZ), Pfizer, and Janssen (a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson). Even including the Moderna vaccine, which is currently undergoing approval procedures, all except Pfizer have been authorized only for adults aged 18 and over. This is why the government chose Pfizer for vaccinating high school seniors.

However, due to recent global vaccine supply shortages, the Pfizer vaccine is not being supplied smoothly, and it is not approved for those under 15 years old. If full in-person classes are implemented in the second semester under the current circumstances, there are concerns that another cluster infection could spread within schools.

On the 13th (local time), a 12-year-old female adolescent is receiving the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine in Los Angeles, California, USA.
[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

However, on the 10th (local time), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted emergency approval for the Pfizer vaccine for minors aged 12 to 15, leading to speculation that if South Korea lowers the approved vaccination age, vaccinations could become possible. The FDA confirmed the safety and efficacy of the Pfizer vaccine after analyzing about 2,000 minors aged 12 to 15. Side effects were observed to be similar to those in adults.

Currently, Canada has also lowered the eligible vaccination age for the Pfizer vaccine to 12 years old. In South Korea, such an age adjustment would be possible through approval by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety and review by the Vaccination Expert Committee.

Additionally, Pfizer is currently conducting safety and efficacy studies on a wide age range from infants aged 6 months to 11 years. The results are expected to be released this fall. Moderna is also conducting research on whether vaccination for minors will be possible, and AZ is conducting studies on vaccination for ages 6 to 17.

On the 13th, at a regular briefing of the Central Disease Control Headquarters, Jeong Eun-kyung, Director of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, responded to a question from a fourth-grade elementary student asking, "When will children get vaccinated?" by saying, "Currently, vaccines are not approved for those under 16 in our country, so they cannot be vaccinated immediately," and added, "

If the vaccine approval range is changed to include fourth-grade elementary students or younger ages, confirming safety and efficacy, we will consider it," stating that vaccination decisions will be made after gathering public opinion and expert judgment.