Netherlands rejects Moderna Covid vaccine for children under 12

The Netherlands will not approve the Moderna vaccine against Covid-19 for children under 12, Minister Ernst Kuipers for Public Health said in a letter to parliament. The European Medicines Agency (EMA) approved the use of the Moderna vaccine for kids between the ages of 6 and 11 in February, but the Dutch Health Council advised against it.

According to the Health Council, the data on the efficacy and safety of the Moderna vaccine is limited for this age group at this stage. And the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, which has previously been approved for kids aged 5 to 11, is widely available. The Health Council, therefore, considers it unnecessary to also use the Moderna vaccine to innoculate young children against the coronavirus. 

The Ministry of Health decided to follow the Health Council's advice, Kuipers said.  He pointed out that the Health Council concluded that the Pfizer vaccine is safe for young children and 90.7 percent effective. "I think it is important that parents can make a good decision about having their child vaccinated based on the most recent data," he said.