All healthy 16 and 17-year-olds in Wales to be offered first Covid vaccine
All healthy 16 and 17-year-olds in Wales will be offered a coronavirus vaccine, the Welsh Government has confirmed.
UK ministers have accepted advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, which said evidence shows the benefits of vaccinating 16 and 17-year-olds far outweigh the risks.
Professor Wei Shen Lim, Covid-19 chair for the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), said in a statement: "After carefully considering the latest data, we advise that healthy 16 to 17-year-olds are offered a first dose of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.
"Advice on when to offer the second vaccine dose will come later.
"While Covid-19 is typically mild or asymptomatic in most young people, it can be very unpleasant for some and for this particular age group, we expect one dose of the vaccine to provide good protection against severe illness and hospitalisation."
Watch the JVCI press conference:
Welsh health minister Eluned Morgan said young people who are within three months of their 18th birthday were already being offered the Covid-19 vaccine in Wales.
The advice on 12-15-year-olds has not changed and remains that persons aged 12-15 years with specific underlying health conditions should be offered two doses of Pfizer vaccine, with an interval of eight weeks between doses.
Also, children and young people aged 12 years and over who are household contacts of persons (adults or children) who are immunosuppressed are now being offered the vaccine,
Ms Morgan said: "In all instances, the offer of vaccination to children and young people must be accompanied by appropriate information to enable children and young people, and those with parental responsibility, to be adequately appraised of the potential harms and benefits of vaccination as part of informed consent prior to vaccination.
"In line with the other nations of the UK, the Welsh Government welcomes the latest JCVI advice and thank them for their expertise and considered judgement on such important issues.
"We are now working with the NHS on the arrangements needed to offer the vaccination to all 16 and 17-year-olds in line with the JCVI advice."
Plaid Cymru welcomed the announcement. Spokesperson for health Rhun ap Iorwerth MS said: “Now that the JCVI has changed its advice on the vaccination of 16 and 17 year olds, I hope Welsh Government will act quickly to roll out those vaccines.
“This age group has been significantly affected by the pandemic in terms of their education and their wellbeing, so school reopening needs to be made as safe as possible in September.
“Vaccination can clearly have a role in that, alongside other important measures such as ensuring adequate ventilation.”
Meanwhile, a Welsh Conservative spokesperson said: “That the roll-out is at this point is great news and only made possible through the British Government’s procurement of plenty of vaccines.
“It also marks a good a sign for the returning of our freedoms as the evidence that vaccinations has severely weakened the link between infection and hospitalisations remains strong.”
More than 70% of people in the UK aged 18 and over now fully vaccinated.
Data released on Wednesday showed fully vaccinated people are half as likely to catch the virus as their unvaccinated counterparts.
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