‘Not easy’ to meet school jab target: paediatrician

A paediatrician warned on Thursday that a government target of having 90 percent of pupils double-jabbed before a school can resume full-day classes would be challenging, given the slow progress in inoculating children against Covid-19 so far.

Speaking on RTHK’s Hong Kong Today programme, Alvin Chan encouraged parents to arrange coronavirus vaccines for their children, warning that there’s a chance case numbers will rebound when in-person teaching resumes in late April, while flight restrictions and hotel quarantine requirements are eased.

“It seems that it’s quite slow to have the vaccination in this age group,” he told RTHK’s Janice Wong. “Up ’til now, with all these efforts, only about 58 percent of this age group of young children have been vaccinated, and only 12 percent have their second dose.

“And so within one month we wish to rush to have 90 percent from 58 percent. Of course, it’s not really easy.”

Chan, a member of the Medical Association, said parents should not be hesitant as inoculation is safe for children.

Chief Executive Carrie Lam announced the 90 percent vaccination requirement at her daily Covid briefing on Wednesday. In addition to the vaccination requirement for pupils, all school staff must have received two doses.

She said that in addition to full-day teaching, a high vaccination rate would allow for the resumption of extra-curricular activities such as sport.

Education Secretary Kevin Yeung told the briefing that schools which don’t meet the vaccination requirement would still be able to resume half-day classes when their early summer break ends in April.