Although vaccinating healthy children against COVID is not recommended by experts, the Swedish government has confused parents after a minister said there were no legal barriers to vaccinating children, drawing criticism from local authorities and doctors. write Euractive.
The COVID-19 vaccine for children was introduced in Sweden in April 2021. At that time, it was only recommended for 16- and 17-year-olds.
Since then, the Swedish Public Health Authority has changed its recommendations for childhood immunization six times. The last time was a year ago, when the agency limited the recommendation to at-risk children.
But even if, until March of this year, immunization of children against COVID-19 was recommended in many European countries, the recommendation was not taken up for this year’s autumn season.
Currently, no country recommends immunization of healthy children, experts from the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), an EU agency specializing in infectious diseases, told Euractiv.
As in Sweden, only children with medical conditions can be vaccinated.
But that didn’t stop parents from vaccinating their children. Since November 22, parents have traveled abroad to vaccinate their children against COVID-19, mainly in Germany, Radio Sweden reported.
Legal, but not recommended
The Christian Democrat Minister of Social Affairs, Jacob Forssmed, recently stated that there are no legal barriers to vaccinating children and teenagers with COVID-19 in Sweden.
“Regions are free to offer this as a service,” he told a news conference.
This was followed by a swift reaction from the Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions, known as SKR.
“It is unfortunate when the state communicates that vaccines should be offered when it is not recommended,” Ameli Norling, head of the SKR’s health care section, wrote on her blog, also warning that as a result, children may take the place of vulnerable people who really need the vaccine.
The situation confuses parents, she added.
Lisa Norén, general practitioner and spokesperson for the patient group Swedish COVID Association, also told Euractiv that the situation is confusing.
“We need clarity. Will Swedish children be allowed to vaccinate or not?” she asked.
Meanwhile, Norling told Euractiv that the regions did not plan to include healthy children in the vaccination campaign for this season.
This was in accordance with the association’s vaccination agreement with the state, which focuses on immunizing at-risk groups, including people over 65, to protect them from serious illness and death, she said.
The agreement, which also governs state reimbursement of vaccination costs, expires at the end of 2023. After that, regions must either cover the cost of vaccinations for 2024 or charge a fee. The vaccine itself will still be paid for by the state.
“We are now thinking about how to proceed when it comes to vaccinating different groups during 2024, including healthy children,” Norling said.
However, current regional vaccination plans will run until the end of March next year. This means healthy young people may have to wait until next spring to get the COVID-19 shot or get a booster.
Increase in the number of COVID cases in Sweden
Meanwhile, there is an increasing number of cases of COVID-19 in Sweden. Because testing is very limited, levels are estimated by virus levels in the sewage system. And the concentration of the virus is now said to be almost as high as in 2020.
“We, the Swedish Covid Association, have repeatedly emphasized that all vaccine recommendations must take into account the risk of long-term COVID and multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C). With a new wave of infections and decisions delayed until the spring, we wonder if this has really been considered?” said Lisa Norén.
But according to Magnus Gisslén, the Swedish Public Health Authority’s state epidemiologist, only a few children actually need to be vaccinated seasonally against COVID-19.
“Our recommendation is very clear. We do not recommend vaccination of healthy children. Health resources must be used where they are best,” he told Euractiv.
“All our data say that the risk of healthy children getting seriously ill from COVID-19 is very low, and they have good immune protection, either because of infection or because of previous vaccination.”
Asked about the duration of protection after an infection or vaccination, which is said to last only three to six months, Gisslénesaid it “lasts considerably longer, especially after repeated vaccinations and infections”.
“As we are repeatedly infected, this builds our immunity against COVID-19.”
He also pointed out that young people have better immune systems, adding that boys and young men have a lower risk of developing myocarditis as a side effect of the vaccine, which is yet another argument against vaccinating children normally healthy.
2023-11-21 19:16:12
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