Former Deputy Chief Medical Officer warns against vaccination obligations for infants


Former Deputy Chief Medical Officer Nick Coatesworth urges the Australian state government to exempt Australians from mandating vaccinations under the age of 12, leaving the decision on vaccination to the parents of the child. I said that. News.com report.

This is because the Therapeutic Goods Agency (TGA) is considering granting provisional approval for the Spikevax (Moderna) vaccine under the age of 12.

Current, TGA The website states that Spikevax is tentatively approved for use in children over the age of 12, and Moderna is currently applying to change the tentative approval for the use of the vaccine in young children. I am.

Therefore, TGA evaluates the potential use of Spikevax in children aged 6 to 11 years.

Coatesworth has been active in promoting overall vaccine deployment, but has emphasized caution when it comes to vaccination of young children.

He told News.com on Monday that the risk of serious illness to infants from COVID-19 is minimal, and the low risk of this illness needs to be weighed against the risk of vaccine-induced adverse events. I emphasized that there is.

“I recommend parents to vaccinate children aged 12 to 15 years, but especially the risk of myocarditis in young boys is that parents wait for more data or refuse to vaccinate. Enough to have the right, “he said.

“By doing so, children must not receive discriminatory public health treatments that are effectively” mandated “by regulation. “

Myocarditis is an inflammation of the heart, TGA, The mRNA vaccine Comirnaty (Pfizer) and Spikevax (Moderna) rarely occur after vaccination. Cases usually occur within 10 days of vaccination and usually resolve weeks after treatment and rest.

According to the TGA, this condition has been reported in 1 in 100,000 people in Australia after vaccination with the Comirnaty vaccine, most commonly in young men and teenage boys after the second vaccination. To do.

According to TGA Adverse event notification databaseAs of November 9, 672 cases of myocarditis associated with the COVID-19 vaccine were reported in Australia, killing 3 people.

Currently, Moderna, November 9th, Said Being in the pilot stage of a pediatric COVID-19 vaccine “KidCOVE” study in children aged 6 months to 12 years. However, two weeks after the first dose of mRNA-1273 at a dose level of 50 µg, the efficacy of the study using the primary case definition of COVID-19 was 100%.

Vaccine efficacy was 65% for asymptomatic infections 2 weeks after the first dose, whereas for SARS-CoV-2 infections, regardless of symptoms, vaccine efficacy was 2 weeks after the first dose. It was 80%.

However, Coatesworth also emphasized that parents have choices, make decisions based on medical advice, and should not be subject to vaccination requirements for their children.

He also criticized the Victoria State Government for requiring teenagers to be vaccinated against access to certain facilities, News.com reported.

“Especially in Victoria, supreme health physicians violate the basic ethical principles of autonomy in discriminatory treatment of unvaccinated 12-15 year olds,” he said.

He added that this policy is not necessary as the vulnerable age group exceeds the 90 percent double dose milestone.

NS Herald Sun On Tuesday, the Victoria State Government reported that if the TGA approved the Moderna vaccine for that age group, it would still be considering obligations for children aged 5 to 11 years. This means that if you are not vaccinated, you will be locked out of hospitality, retail, and major events.

Martin Foley, Secretary of State for Health of Victoria, said advice from the TGA and the National Expert Immunology Commission is still pending on whether the vaccine is safe and effective for younger children.

In response to a question about whether Victoria requires a vaccine between the ages of 5 and 11, Foley said:

“I’m confident that there will be strong support among people between the ages of 5 and 11 when the Commonwealth says it’s safe,” he added.

Steve Milne

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