HSE to begin roll-out of Covid-19 vaccines to children under 4

The HSE announced today that from Monday next (February 20) it is to begin providing Covid-19 vaccines to children aged between six months and four years.

The appointments are being made available for booking from today at www.hse.ie.

Announcing the move, the HSE said the National Immunisation Advisory Committee (NIAC) was recommending the vaccinations in particular for children in this age group who have underlying conditions that place them at a higher risk of a severe Covid-19 infection.

It added that NIAC was also recommending offering Covid vaccines to all children in this age range, in order to "provide extra protection from the rare risks of serious illness from Covid-19... as well as providing the modest benefit in reducing household transmission to those immunocompromised or too young for vaccination."

Dr Aparna Keegan, Specialist in Public Health Medicine, HSE National Immunisation Office (NIO) said; "We are encouraging parents to familiarise themselves with HSE advice on the Children’s Covid-19 vaccine with information available at www.hse.ie.

"We know from listening to parents that they have questions about getting the Covid-19 vaccine for their children. This is why we have provided information on our website to help parents make an informed decision.

"While serious illness from Covid-19 in this age group is rare, this vaccine offers further protection particularly for children who have health conditions that put them at high risk of severe Covid-19."

Children in this age group will require three doses of the vaccine, the HSE said, with an interval of three weeks between dose one and two, and at least eight weeks between dose two and three.

It is also recommended that the Covid-19 vaccine is separated from the administration of other vaccines by 14 days.

Community Vaccination Centres across the country will commence the roll out of clinics from Monday onwards with many commencing clinics later in the week and over the following weekend.

At present the vaccination is only available through the community vaccination centres.

Clinic details will be updated on www.hse.ie on a rolling basis, so parents are advised to check the website for updates on clinic availability in the coming weeks.