The children in that age group will be able to get a first
dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech shot in Berlin’s mass vaccination centers in schools,
doctors’ offices and even at the city’s Natural History Museum.
The news comes days after Germany’s independent vaccination
advisory panel said Thursday it was recommending vaccination for children age 5
to 11 with preexisting conditions or who are in close contact with vulnerable
people. Children in this age group should receive two doses of the
Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine three to six weeks apart, the panel said.
The panel, known by its German acronym STIKO, added that
young children without preexisting conditions can be vaccinated if there is an
“individual desire” to do so — a step short of advising that all children in
that age group get the shots.
Top government officials have pushed to make the vaccine
available for younger children across the country.
“For many 5- to 11-year-old children and their families,
this is a huge relief,” incoming families minister Anne Spiegel told the Funke
media group in an interview published Sunday.
Other German states, including North Rhine-Westphalia,
Hamburg and Bavaria, will also make shots available to the 5-11 age group in
the coming days. -AP