Portugal will start vaccinating children between the ages of 5 and 11 against COVID-19 from December 18, the country's Deputy Secretary of State and Health Lacerda Sales announced Friday.
Article continues below
Children under nine currently have the highest incidence of COVID-19 in Portugal, according to the Portuguese Directorate General for Health (DGS).
Therefore, Sales said, the country's decision to vaccinate young children "results from the recommendation of the DGS, together with the Technical Commission on Vaccination, and considering the logistical issues and availability of vaccines."
Parents will be able to book appointments from next week, and children with comorbidities will be prioritized.
"We have a plan, we have logistics, we have excellent health professionals and the confidence to implement it," Sales said. "We know that we must protect our children."
The Director General of Portuguese Health, Graca Freitas, said that "no sanctions of any kind are foreseen for children who are not vaccinated," and there will be no "discriminatory attitude between those who are vaccinated and those who are not."
Infectious disease scientist Antonio Silva Graca told RTP television that vaccinating children under the age of 12 is an important part of fighting the pandemic because it "increases the percentage of the population that is protected."
However, Rui Martins, president of the National Independent Confederation of Parents and Guardians, admitted that vaccinating children is something that raises doubts.
Child psychiatrist Maria do Carmo Santos, who works at Hospital de Sao Joao in Porto, says that parents' attitudes "will be crucial to reassure their children," and that the vaccine should be administered in schools, because it is a "favorable environment, that children know."
According to official data, 88.6 percent of the Portuguese population is already fully vaccinated, and 71.69 percent of the eligible population has already received a booster shot. ■