City opens vax listing for 5 to 11 years old

The city government of Baguio began the vaccination registration for children aged five to 11 years old in preparation for the expanded rollout for the pediatric group.
Registration for the group is expected to have started on Jan. 1, as posted by the Public Information Office of the City Mayor’s Office in its Faceboook account on Dec. 29, 2021.
The government is expected to start the vaccination of children below 12 years old this year, although the exact date of the rollout is yet to be announced.
Baguio announced the opening of the registration for the five to 11 year-old age bracket after the Food and Drugs Administration issued an emergency use authorization (EUA) for the lower dosage of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for the pediatric group on Dec. 23, 2021.
But while the FDA issued the EUA for Pfizer, the Department of Health is yet to start the vaccination of kids five to 11 years old.
The DOH, on Dec. 27 last year, clarified the ‌inoculation of children below 12 years old has not yet started since preparations for the rollout of vaccines for the age group was still underway.
In an advisory, the DOH said the National Covid-19 Vaccination Operations Center will announce the date when the vaccination will start once the vaccine suitable for five to 11 years old kids and its appropriate syringes becomes available.
In the meantime, the DOH advised parents and guardians to have their children receive their regular immunization.
“While waiting for the Covid-19 vaccines to be rolled out for this pediatric group, we recommend that children complete their routine immunization to be protected from more contagious and fatal disease like measles, rubella, tetanus, and diptheria,” the advisory stated.
The government targets to inoculate 13.5 million children aged five to 11 years old.
In October last year, the DOH started administering the Covid-19 shots to children aged 12 to 17 years old.
In Baguio, 26,806 individuals under the 12 to 17 years old bracket are already fully vaccinated as of Dec. 29, 2021. The figure represents 62.61 percent of the 42,811 eligible population of young individuals. – Jane B. Cadalig