Vaccines for kids? B.C.'s top doctor says immunizing adults also protects children
As British Columbia’s COVID-19 restrictions lift throughout the summer, many are already looking ahead to the fall when kids go back to school.
However, at this point children under the age of 12 are not eligible to be vaccinated in Canada. B.C.’s top doctor says there are a number of promising studies underway and it's possible that both Pfizer and Moderna could be available to younger kids by the end of the calendar year.
"There's also some really good data that shows that for every 20 per cent increase in immunization in adults 18 and above, even if you don't immunized children, they are protected,” said Henry in her daily COVID-19 briefing Thursday.
Pfizer is currently the only vaccine approved for kids between the ages of 12 and 18.
Moderna has submitted data to Health Canada with the hope of getting approval as well.
Both Pfizer and Moderna are doing so-called "bridging studies" for children as young as six months old.
Data from early studies has shown younger people may not require a full dose of vaccine.
People under the age of 12 make up about 11 per cent of B.C.’s population and because of that Henry is confident the province can maintain low rates of transmission, even without immunizing children.
"I think globally, it's imperative for us to protect healthcare workers and adults in many other countries. That's going to protect us all as a global community, and then look to how do we protect children individually as vaccine becomes available later in the year, “ she said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter banned from NBA
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter has been handed a lifetime ban from The National Basketball Association (NBA) following an investigation which found he disclosed confidential information to sports bettors, the league says.
Storage shed or shipping container? B.C. Supreme Court settles long-running bylaw dispute
A long-running dispute over whether a structure on a Surrey property violates a city bylaw that prohibits shipping containers on residential lots has been settled by the B.C. Supreme Court