JERUSALEM, Israel – A senior Israeli health official said on Wednesday that Israel will wait for FDA approval before the country begins vaccinating children ages 5-11.
“We are waiting for a regulatory approval,” Dr. Sharon Alroy-Preis, the ministry’s chief of public health services, told Army Radio.
Pfizer said on Monday it will seek emergency FDA approval of its COVID-19 vaccine for kids ages 5-11 after it was shown to generate a safe and strong immune response in ongoing tests. For younger children, Pfizer tested a much lower dose – only a third of what is normally administered to older individuals.
Israel has made the Pfizer vaccine, including booster shots, available to anyone 12 and older.
With school back in session, many Israeli families are concerned about the virus spreading in classrooms.
On Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett faced backlash for reported comments he made last month during a coronavirus cabinet meeting, suggesting that parents should pressure each other to vaccinate their children.
During the cabinet meeting, leaders voted to designate “red” cities as places where COVID cases are high. In red cities, students in grades 8-12 will only be allowed to attend in-person lessons if more than 70% of the class is vaccinated with at least one dose. If that number is less than 70%, students will learn online.
Rather than moving entire grade levels online, Bennett reportedly advocated for a narrower policy – one that would move individual classes with less than 70% vaccination to distance learning. He believed doing so would encourage parents to pressure others to get their kids vaccinated, Israel’s Channel 13 news reported.
“I want the parents of those who vaccinated their children to put pressure on the parents who did not vaccinate,” Bennett was quoted as saying. “I want the parents to compete with each other. Let them fight.”
A group called the National Parent’s Association condemned Bennett for his reported comments.
“The statements attributed to the prime minister, for wanting, ostensibly, the parents to fight each other are shocking and it would have been better if they had not been said at all,” a statement by the organization read.
“We demand that the prime minister rescind his statement and, most importantly, allow all Israeli children their basic right to study in educational institutions with tests or vaccines, and not only with vaccines,” they added.
The Prime Minister’s Office did not confirm or deny the report, but issued a statement saying that Bennett “strives to end the phenomenon of mass quarantines and allow as normal a life as possible for Israeli students and their parents, while maintaining their health.”
“To this end, he asked the various professionals to examine options for outlines that will allow for regular and continuous learning,” the statement said.
According to Israel’s Health Ministry, an overwhelming majority of serious COVID patients are unvaccinated. Some 85% of new serious COVID-19 patients under the age of 60 haven’t received any vaccine, according to Ynet news. Just 2.3% of patients received three doses, and the remaining got two doses.
In total, more than 70% of all current serious COVID-19 patients are unvaccinated.
Approximately 6 million Israelis have received at least one dose of the Pfizer vaccine, 5.5 million have gotten both shots, and 3.1 million have obtained a third booster dose.
Over 7,500 people have died from virus complications since the pandemic began.
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