This should be the last word from the ministry. The agreement of a single parent is again sufficient to vaccinate 5-11 year olds against Covid-19, the ministry announced on Tuesday, anxious to get vaccinations in children off the ground. On January 6, the ministry had indicated that the written agreement of both parents was becoming necessary, in accordance with a request from the Council of State.
Anti-Covid vaccination has been open since the end of December for 5-11 year olds in France, with a single type of vaccine: a less dosed version of that developed by Pfizer-BioNTech. Only 4% of children aged 5 to 11 have received a first dose of vaccine to date in France, much less than in our neighbors (more than 50% in Spain). “We cannot say that it is a great success for the moment”, recognizes Alain Fisher, the president of the Council of orientation of the vaccine strategy.
This requirement had aroused the regret of some experts, considering it unnecessary and counterproductive. This was already the case for Alain Fischer, whose Orientation Council is responsible for guiding government action in this area. “It’s a bit unfortunate, it’s an obstacle that somewhat dramatizes this notion of vaccination,” he said at the time of the obligation of double parental authorization.
Pharmacists and nurses to the rescue
By easing this rule, the government is trying to relaunch vaccination in this age group. In anticipation of a possible acceleration of vaccination for this age group, it will also authorize pharmacists and nurses to vaccinate children, which was previously reserved only for doctors.
“Pharmacies have the possibility of ordering” since Monday January 24 a limited number of Pfizer vaccines for children, announced the Union of Unions of Community Pharmacists (USPO). The information was confirmed on Tuesday by the ministry.