Vaccination for Children Now Available

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Covid-19 vaccination program targeting children aged between 6-11 years old has officially on Tuesday, December 14, 2021. However, not every child can receive the vaccines. Children who display several conditions are not recommended to be injected with Covid-19 vaccines. 

Indonesian Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin previously announced that the Sinovac coronavirus vaccine will be enrolled for the vaccination. Budi said that the doses that will be administered to the children will be the same amount as for adults, which is 0.5 ml. There will be a 4-week gap between the first and second doses. 

The official recommendation for the vaccination for children was issued by the Indonesian Pediatrician Association (IDAI) in November 2021. IDAI''s chairperson Pimprin B. Yanuarso said that the recommendation was issued after Covid-19 cases amount to 13 percent of cases in Indonesia. 

Children are also more exposed to the virus as schools have started to open again after years of implementing remote learning. The official recommendation remains dynamic and can change in the future depending on scientific developments.

"What's critical is that children can not just be infected, but also become potential carriers of the covid virus to people in their vicinity. It can pose a high risk for the elderly they meet and other older family members with comorbidity," Yanuarso said. 

Children, however, cannot be vaccinated if they are under the following conditions:

1. Children recovering from Covid-19 in less than 3 months
2. Other post-immunizations less than 1 month
3. Teenagers who are pregnant.
4. Children with hypertension and diabetes mellitus
5. Having chronic diseases or congenital abnormalities that are not controlled.
6. Children with transverse myelitis, which is an inflammatory condition in one part of the spinal cord.
7. Children with acute demyelinating encephalomyelitis (ADEM), which is a rare type of inflammation that affects the brain and spinal cord, usually affects children.
8. Children with Guillain Barre Syndrome, which is an autoimmune disease. 
9. Children with cancer who are undergoing chemotherapy/radiotherapy
10. Pediatric patients who are receiving severe immunosuppressant/cytostatic treatment
11. The child is having a fever up to 37.50 C

However, children undergoing cancer treatment, chronic or autoimmune diseases that are still under control, can follow general immunization guidelines by consulting health experts before receiving the Covid-19 vaccine.

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