From July, People in Their 50s, School Staff, and High School Seniors Will Receive Vaccinations

AZ Vaccinations Begin for Ages 60-64 and Pfizer for Military Personnel Under 30
'36 Million First Doses' Third Quarter Vaccination Plan Gradually Detailed
High Possibility of Age-Sequential Vaccinations from 50s to 40s and 30s

On the 7th, the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine for the general elderly population aged 60 to 64 living in the community and military personnel under 30 years old began. The vaccination center set up at Bukahyeon Culture and Sports Center in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, was crowded with citizens waiting to receive the vaccine. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

The vaccination of AstraZeneca (AZ) for those aged 60-64, the 'last puzzle' in the elderly vaccination, and the Pfizer vaccination for military personnel under 30 will begin on the 7th. With the early achievement of the second quarter goal of 13 million first doses becoming visible, attention is also increasing on the third quarter vaccination plan, which will determine the success of achieving herd immunity by November.

According to the COVID-19 Vaccination Response Promotion Team on the 7th, the first dose for those aged 60-64 will be administered from this day at local clinics and nationwide entrusted medical institutions. Among the 3,955,837 eligible people aged 60-64 who made advance reservations by the 3rd, 3,117,616 (78.8%) have completed their vaccination reservations. This reservation rate is somewhat lower compared to 82.7% for those aged 70-74 and 81.6% for those aged 65-69, who also closed reservations on the same day.

About 350,000 military personnel under 30 will also start receiving the Pfizer vaccine at military medical institutions from this day. Previously, military personnel aged 30 and above began receiving the AZ vaccine last month. According to the Ministry of National Defense, as of the 4th, 116,922 people, or 88.1% of the eligible population, have completed vaccination.

From the 10th, Janssen vaccine administration will begin. This is the third vaccine to be administered domestically. Through the reservation for vaccination on the 1st for reservists and civil defense personnel aged 30-59, as well as defense and diplomatic personnel, a total of 894,133 people have made reservations. Of the 1,012,800 doses of the imported vaccine, the remainder will be administered to urgent travelers for essential activities such as official duties and economic activities, and residents of some islands without doctors.

As of the previous day, 7,598,787 people have completed their first dose. Combining about 1.7 million elderly aged 65-74 who have reserved but whose vaccination period has not yet arrived, 2.96 million reserved aged 60-64 starting vaccination today, and 900,000 Janssen vaccine reservations, the total number expected to be reserved within this month suggests that the government's goal of '13 million + a' in the first half of the year will likely be achieved without major difficulties.

In the third quarter, general adults will be vaccinated intensively. The government plans to start vaccinating people in their 50s, daycare centers, kindergartens, elementary, middle, and high school staff, and high school seniors from next month. Since the plan is to complete the first dose for about 36 million people, approximately 70% of the total population, by September, most adults are expected to receive the vaccine during this period. The detailed third quarter vaccination plan will be announced in the third week of this month.

The third quarter vaccination is likely to be conducted in order of age from the 50s down to the 30s. While continuing the existing principle of prioritizing vaccination for the elderly due to higher fatality rates with increasing age, it differs from the second quarter by expanding the target group to the general population rather than focusing on specific occupational groups.

In particular, the types of COVID-19 vaccines supplied domestically will increase to five, and 80 million doses (enough for 40 million people) are scheduled to be imported in the third quarter alone, ensuring sufficient supply. Once more than 8 million people in their 50s begin vaccination in July, those in their 30s are likely to start making reservations or receiving vaccinations in the mid to late third quarter. Vaccination plans for teenagers, except for high school seniors and college entrance exam candidates, have not yet been concretized. Currently, no vaccine has been approved domestically for those under 16 years old. Recently, Korea Pfizer has applied to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety for a preliminary review to lower the vaccination age to 12, based on recommendations from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and others.