Timeline for COVID-19 vaccine approval for young children moving up

Dr. Joss Reimer says approvals for the COVID-19 vaccine for youth could be coming as soon as mid-November.

Health Canada has not approved the Pfizer vaccine for children aged five to 11 yet, but officials say it could be coming soon. Reimer says FDA's Medical Advisory Group, a part of the United State's approval process is recommending the vaccine for children aged five-11. Health Canada will be considering this recommendation as they make their decision. 

"The National Advisor Community on Immunization will weigh in on whether the benefits of the shot outweigh the potential risks for young children in Canada. This will also be a part of our decision-making in Manitoba," Reimer says in a Wednesday press conference.

Children are less likely to have severe cases of the virus.

The doctor says children under the age of 12 make up one-third of all COVID-19 cases, and 75 per cent of these cases are in schools. 

According to Manitoba Education, there have been 499 recorded student COVID-19 cases in Manitoba's schools since September, making up 12.33 per cent of all of Manitoba's cases in this time period.

"When we are looking at specific questions about younger kids getting an infection, they are getting it perhaps, (from) individuals they are interacting with, whether it is outside of school activities, get-togethers, (or) maybe their parents aren't vaccinated and that was the first point of exposure within the household. There are a number of ways that happens but that all happens essentially in those who aren't vaccinated," Deputy Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Jazz Atwal says in the press conference when asked why children, who are around vaccinated adults, are contracting COVID at higher rates. 

According to provincial data, 3,129 of the 41,055 designated public staff and independent staff have not provided proof of vaccination and are receiving regular COVID-19 tests. This makes up roughly 7.6 per cent of the total staff.

Reimer suggests parents look to their pediatricians for credible information when researching the vaccine for their children. Atwal says the WHO, Health Canada, the CDC and are credible online sources. The doctor is asking people to steer away from getting information from social media.