The ok from the European Medicines Agency (Ema) to the Coronavirus vaccine for the age group between 5 and 11 years is arriving between today and Monday. And the vaccination obligation for children is not excluded. The president of the Italian Medicines Agency (Aifa) Giorgio Palù said today in an interview with Sky Tg 24. «The EMA is discussing the extension of the possibility of vaccinating the age group 5-11 years. The decision could already come between today or tomorrow, followed by that of AIFA within 24 hours, ”said Palù. Palù said that “it is very likely that anti Covid vaccinations on children” in our country can start “also from next Monday.
The picture is changing and even the children are hospitalized and have no concomitant pathologies – he added – the risk of infection is becoming much higher than the risk of the vaccine that does not exist in the studies ». And he did not exclude the obligation of the anti-Covid vaccine for the 5-11 year old group: «It is an assessment that will be made progressively, weighted with risks and benefits. The data of the epidemic are telling us that the 5-11 year old category is the one with the highest number of incident cases ». Also because «Covid-19 is changing. If before 2% of children contracted the infection, with the Alpha variant, today we are at 25-30% ».
According to the professor, the reinforced Green pass «is certainly a protection measure because those who go to meeting places for pleasure or for playful activities put others at risk if they are not vaccinated while we have to keep working. But it is important that those who are not vaccinated in public administration get vaccinated because they play an essential role for society and are in contact with the public. So I would say that it takes a lot of common sense ». And regarding the duration of the green certification: “Nine months could be a compromise way to include as many people as possible, but this is not so much a scientific assessment as of the opportunity and availability of means and vaccination resources”.