Vietnam’s Ministry of Health (MoH) has requested the People’s Committees of provinces and cities nationwide to make preparations for immunizing infants aged six months to less than five years old against Covid-19.
The MoH said it would deploy the vaccination drive as soon as sufficient conditions and scientific basis are ensured, stressing that the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on June 19 recommended Covid vaccination for children aged six months and above.
It added that all provinces and cities must submit a report on the population of children in this age group and propose the quantities of vaccine needed to Pasteur Institutes before September 30.
A medic vaccinates Moderna Covid-19 vaccine for a child in Hanoi. Photo: Phong Chau/ The Hanoi Times |
The ministry will keep pushing for more excellent vaccination coverage amid low demand for booster shots in various localities. Therefore, it requested that cities and provinces should not waste vaccines.
The MoH assessed that all 63 provinces and cities in Vietnam had ensured safety and effectiveness in Covid-19 vaccination campaigns under its regulations and guidelines issued over the past time.
According to the ministry’s report, of the nation's 96-million population, authorities have administered 259 million doses nationwide to citizens aged five years. Most children aged 12 and above have been given two shots.
Up to 88% of children aged 5-11 have received at least one Covid-19 vaccine shot, and 60% have got two, the report said.
According to the national Covid-19 prevention program for 2022-2023 issued on March 17, Vietnam set a target to have finished administering the second dose for children aged 12-17 and the third dose for adults within the first quarter of 2022.
He said that children aged five to 11 years would receive two doses within September, emphasizing that the World Health Organization (WHO) had recommended increasing the rate of Covid-19 vaccination in younger age groups, who are vulnerable due to their immature immune systems.
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