By Maria del Pilar Panizo
It seems like children in British Columbia between six months and four years of age will be soon eligible to register and receive the protection of the vaccine against COVID-19. The Government of B.C., following Health Canada’s approval of the Moderna vaccine, and the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) recommendation of its use, will start offering the vaccine at clinics throughout the province on August 2, 2022.
The Minister of Health, Adrian Dix, claims that B.C. has the capacity and experience to deliver this COVID-19 campaign for this new age group and encourages parents to register their kids, by inviting them to book an appointment starting on August 2. Parents or guardians that want to vaccinate their eligible children can now register them in the provincial Get Vaccinated system. Once the registration is completed, they will be invited to book the vaccination at a clinic in their community starting in August, which is when the program starts. If the children are not 6 months old yet, they should still be registered. Parents will receive an invitation when the child reaches six months of age.
Dr. Martin Lavoie, provincial health officer, acknowledges the safety of the vaccines and says that, even when children are not that affected by the symptoms of COVID-19, there are still cases where they get sick, and that is why vaccines are so important to protect our communities and the people we love. The executive leadership of B.C. COVID-19 Immunization Plan Dr. Penny Ballem also encourages parents to register their children as soon as possible. This is because the NACI recommends that children who already had COVID-19 wait eight weeks after the start of the symptoms, before beginning or continuing the primary series.
The Moderna vaccine for children from six months to 4 years old is a two-dose series, given eight weeks apart, being this a smaller dose for younger children but with the same amount of protection from COVID-19, so parents and guardians can start registering children through the Get Vaccinated system and invitations to book an appointment will be sent in August. We hope you found this information helpful and if you want to know more about it, the links below can lead you to some more answers.
Sources:
BC Gov News: https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2022HLTH0165-001115
To register with the provincial Get Vaccinated system: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/covid-19/vaccine/register
To learn more about COVID-19 vaccines for young children: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/covid-19/vaccine/young-children
For more information on what to expect when you go to get vaccinated for COVID-19, visit: www.bccdc.ca/health-info/diseases-conditions/covid-19/covid-19-vaccine/getting-a-vaccine
