US STARTS VACCINATING CHILDREN AGED 5 TO 11

United States health authorities gave the thumbs up for children aged five to 11 to get their Covid-19 vaccine.

In a statement released by the White House, President Joe Biden said that the country has reached a turning point in its battle against the virus.

“Vaccinating younger children will allow parents to end months of anxious worrying about their kids, and reduce the extent to which children spread the virus to others. It is a major step forward for our nation in our fight to defeat the virus.”

The age group means up to 28 million children will be eligible for the Pfizer-BioNtech vaccine.

With the government already having secured enough vaccines for every single child in the United States, the packing and shipping of the vaccines have begun.

In South Africa, children aged 12 to 17 are now eligible to get the vaccine as well. Due to the Children’s Act, the government confirmed that this age group won’t need consent from their parents or guardians if they want to get the vaccine.

Image credit: Sky News