Gov’t eyes COVID-19 jabs for babies, toddlers starting April

National Task Force against Coronavirus Disease-2019 (NTF COVID-19) chief implementer Carlito Galvez Jr. / PRESIDENTIAL FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — The national government wants to start vaccinating babies and toddlers 4 years old and younger this year, according to vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr., although the World Health Organization has not yet recommended any vaccine brand for the age group.

“We are now making some contingencies to acquire doses that we need to include ages 0 to 4,” Galvez revealed in a recorded briefing with President Duterte aired on Monday night.

Galvez said the government aims to vaccinate about 11.11 million 0 to 4-year-olds against COVID-19 starting in April.

Based on the estimates of the Philippine Statistics Authority, there are 11.5 million Filipinos age 0 to 4 years old in 2020.Galvez, the chief implementer of the National Task Force Against COVID-19, said the move would “maximize the protection among all population groups.”

This would make the Philippines the country with the youngest age group eligible for COVID-19 inoculation.

Cuba started vaccinating their children against COVID-19 as young as 2 years old, using Soberana 2 and Soberana Plus, two of their locally developed vaccines, during the Delta variant surge in September last year. Venezuela followed suit in November, using the Cuban vaccine.

China and the United Arab Emirates inoculated their population as young as 3 also last year.

Under study

Pfizer is still studying the safety, tolerability and immunogenicity of its COVID-19 vaccine for children 6 months to under 5 years of age.

In December, it said it was evaluating a third dose of 3 micrograms for children 6 months to under 5 years of age, after the second dose of the two-dose series to provide high levels of protection in this young age group.

Should the study be successful, Pfizer said it would submit its data to regulators for emergency use authorization (EUA) in the first half of 2022.

Meanwhile, children age 5 to 11 years old—estimated at 14.7 million—may start to receive their COVID-19 jabs by the end of January. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved in October the EUA of Pfizer jabs to be used for age 5 to 11, which were of lower dosage and concentration than those given to adults.

Currently, the youngest eligible to receive COVID-19 jabs in the country is 12.

Only vaccines developed by US-based pharmaceutical firms Pfizer and Moderna can be used for minors age 12 to 17, which is estimated to be around 12.7 million.

The FDA has yet to make a decision on Chinese drugmaker Sinovac on its request to use CoronaVac vaccine for kids age 3 to 17. Currently, CoronaVac has an EUA to be administered for 18 years old and above.

Booster shots for children would depend on the amendments to the EUA of vaccine makers.