The territory of Hong Kong has approved the use of China’s Sinovac Biotech Covid vaccine for three to 17 years-olds, with the Secretary for Food and Health, who believes that the benefits of the vaccine outweigh the risks posed to this group, announcing that “adolescents aged 12 to 17 years-old will be accorded priority”. The Guardian has the story.
Hong Kong has approved lowering the age limit for the Covid vaccine from China’s Sinovac Biotech to three, down from 18 years of age.
Hong Kong’s Secretary for Food and Health, Sophia Chan, said in a statement published on Saturday: “Adolescents aged 12 to 17 will be accorded priority to receive the vaccine, with a view to extending to children of a younger age group at a later stage.”
She considered the benefits of approving the extension of the age eligibility to cover those aged three to 17 years-old outweighed the risks, the statement said.
A Hong Kong Government advisory panel on Covid vaccines had earlier recommended that the Minister approved the new age limit, it said.
The extension of the age eligibility comes after Hong Kong’s vaccination campaign, which started in February, has lagged behind many other developed economies. About 67% of the population have received two shots of either Sinovac or Germany’s BioNTech vaccine.
Hong Kong’s Government said in separate statement on Friday that it had purchased 1 million extra doses of BioNTech vaccine for third dose Covid vaccinations.
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