COVID-19 vaccination programme for the 12- and 14-year-old age groups beginning from March 16

COVID-19 vaccination programme for the 12- and 14-year-old age groups beginning from March 16

After opening the COVID-19 vaccination programme for the 15-17-year-old age group in the country more than two months ago, the Center has now announced plans to expand the program to the 12- and 14-year-old age groups beginning March 16. Sources from the government estimate there are 7.11 crore people in this age group in India.

Children younger than 14 will be treated with the anti-receptor binding domain protein subunit vaccine Corbevax, which is made by the Hyderabad company Biological E in collaboration with Baylor College in the USA.

In December of last year, the Drug Controller General of India approved the emergency use of this vaccination for population groups older than 12-years-old. The vaccine will comprise two doses to be given 28 days apart.

Health ministry sources claim the decision was reached following “due deliberation with scientific bodies”.

In other words, those born in 2008-2010 will now be eligible for COVID-19 vaccinations as well.

Furthermore, the government has also decided that the condition of co-morbidity will be removed for the COVID-19 precaution dose for the population over 60 years old as of March 16.

Additionally, all persons over 60 years of age will be eligible to receive booster doses of COVID-19.

The World Health Organization has provided more than 9 crore shots against Coronavirus to those 15-17 years of age, while more than 2 crore booster doses have been given to those eligible.

There is only one antibody vaccine available for the 15-17-year-old age group, estimated to be 7.4 crore people. This is Covaxin, a COVID-19 vaccine developed by Bharat Biotech.

Starting January 10, 2022, healthcare and frontline workers who do not have underlying illnesses – those over 60 years of age with underlying diseases, for example – will be eligible for precaution doses, provided that the time between doses has been at least nine months.

In its expanded coverage of vaccines for COVID-19, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya announced on Monday that the country would start vaccinating children between 12 and 14 years of age from March 16. People aged 60 and older will no longer be required to get a precautionary dose due to co-morbid circumstances. The booster shot will now be available to everyone in that age group.

The Union Government decided following due consultation with scientific bodies to start the COVID19 vaccination program for the 12-13 year age group and the 13-14 year age group (those born in 2008, 2009, and 2010). People above 12 years of age will be vaccinated from 16th March 2022,” the health ministry said.

Corbevax, manufactured by Biological Evans, Hyderabad, is the vaccine to be administered for COVID-19.

In an announcement in Hindi on social media, the minister said, “If the children are safe then the country is safe! I am happy to inform you that beginning March 16, children in the age group of 12 to 13 and 13 to 14 can receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Also, the grandchildren of children in this age group will be able to get a precaution dose.” The minister urged the families of children as well as the elderly to get vaccinated.

Vaccination is already mandatory for anyone over 14 years of age.

The Centre announced Monday that Biological E’s Corbevax vaccine will be administered to children in the 12- to 14-year-old age group starting this week. Also, the precaution doses allowed for senior citizens have been removed from the co-morbidity clause.

Keeping children safe means keeping India safe. We are pleased to inform you that children in the age group of 12 to 14 will be able to receive Covid vaccinations beginning on March 16. As an added benefit, patients age 60+ will now be able to receive precaution doses. Children and people over 60 years of age, especially those with family members who are active in the military, should receive the third dosage,” Union health minister Mansukh Mandaviya said.

1. It is India’s first indigenously developed protein subunit vaccine against Covid-19, developed from Hyderabad-based Biological E. Limited, together with the Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development and the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas. Here’s all you need to know about Corbevax:
2. Corbevax will be administered to children in the 12 to 14 age group at the centre. A date has been set for the launch of the service in the country by the end of December 2021.
3. Indian drug regulators approved emergency use authorization for Corbevax in February this year, for children between the ages of 12 and 18.
4. It is the first recombinant protein subunit vaccine to be marketed as a public health solution, comparable to the hepatitis shot. This avoids the risks associated with mRNA (Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna) and non-replicating viral vector vaccines (Covishield, Sputnik V), which were marketed for the first time during the Covid-19 pandemic as vaccine development was pursued at an unprecedented scale to address the global crisis.
5. Corbevax had a superior immune response to Covishield in Phase-III clinical trials, Biological E reported. The inhibitor displayed superior immunity against the ancestral Wuhan strain and the globally dominant Delta strain.
6. Over 90 per cent of the vaccine’s effectiveness was demonstrated against the original Wuhan strain of the novel coronavirus, and over 80 per cent was demonstrated against symptomatic infections caused by the Delta strain. According to recent reports, the product’s effectiveness is being assessed against the Omicron variant.
7. The Corbevax vaccine uses a recombinant protein platform that is different from the one used by any other vaccine in the United States currently. Like other vaccines, the corbevax vaccine is designed to target the spike protein on the surface of virus particles. As opposed to instructing cells to replicate the spike proteins, the vaccine delivers a small volume of the cloned proteins grown in a laboratory.
8. By recognizing these proteins as a threat, the immune system develops a response that ultimately reduces the ability of the live virus to infect cells and cause disease.
9. In a statement released by BioE, they emphasized: “the vaccine will be affordable and high-quality, ensuring sustainable access to low and middle-income countries, providing sustainable access.” There is also a report that it could be the cheapest vaccine available in India, with its two shots expected to be combined priced at less than Rs 400. One dose of Covishield costs about Rs 300-Rs 400, while the Russian Sputnik V costs around Rs 1,000. Covaxin’s two shots cost about Rs 1,400

edited and proofread by nikita sharma