Saudi Arabia approves half dose of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for children

Saudi Arabia approves half dose of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for children

Saudi health authorities have approved the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for children in the age group of five and 11 years. The dose will be administered in two phases.

Children infected with COVID-19 experience mild symptoms while only a small group get severe illness and hospitalization, the Deputy Minister of Health said. There are no symptoms reported among children who have received the vaccine, he added.

He underlined the need to take the vaccine by a large number of children as they are a source of infection for people in the older age groups. The booster dose will provide lasting protection, and the need for it increased following the spread of the mutated Omicron variant and continued presence of a large group of non-vaccinated people, he said.