THOSE aged 18 and below in Malaysia are not eligible for Covid-19 vaccination because there are no data from clinical trials to show whether the vaccine is safe for them.

This was revealed by Dr Andrew Kiyu, the chairman of the Sarawak Covid-19 Vaccine Advisory Group in the state disaster management committee. 

He said with the exception of Pfizer-BioNTech, which did some clinical trials with 16-year-olds, the test subjects of all the other vaccine manufacturers are above 18.

“The vaccine is research-based. In the clinical trials, all the subjects are above 18. 

“If the age group is not included (in the clinical trials), then they (the vaccine) will not be given to those in that age group.” 

Kiyu said to get minors as test subjects also required parental consent and that could be difficult to get at a time when these pharmaceutical companies were racing against each other to come out with a workable vaccine.

“Over 18, consent is easier to get. Moreover, children are considered vulnerable,” he added. 

Kiyu said this was why Malaysia, like most countries, set the eligibility at 18. 

He, however, said the only exception was Israel that set the eligible age at 16 and only for the Pfizer-BioNTech’s Comirnaty vaccine. 

Kiyu said the Chinese pharmaceutical company producing the CanSino vaccine was one of several companies now undertaking studies on the effect of the vaccines in children and pregnant women. – April 22, 2021.