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COVID-19 VACCINES

Denmark stops offering Moderna Covid-19 vaccine to under-18s

Denmark stops offering Moderna Covid-19 vaccine to under-18sPeople under the age of 18 will no longer be offered the Covid-19 vaccine from Moderna in a precautionary measure, the Danish Health Authority has confirmed.

Denmark has confirmed the withdrawal of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine for people under 18 years old, in a precautionary measure.
Denmark has confirmed the withdrawal of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine for people under 18 years old, in a precautionary measure.Photo: Mike Segar/Reuters/Ritzau Scanpix

Persons aged 12-17 will therefore only receive the Pfizer jab. The decision has been taken based on a “precautionary principle,” the health authority said in a statement.

The Pfizer vaccine has, until now, been the main vaccine type offered to people in the demographic. It will from now on be the only Covid-19 vaccine used for the age range.

The decision was taken “not least in light of the fact that the largest amount of data exists from use (of the Pfizer vaccine) for children and young people from particularly the United States and Israel,” Danish Health Authority head of department Bolette Søborg said in the statement.

Around 1,100 people under the age of 18 in Denmark have been given the Moderna vaccine, according to the authority.

A new Nordic study has assessed the risk of meningitis and myocarditis, both of which are known but very rare side effects of Covid-19 vaccination.

Initial data has raised the possibility of increased risk of myocarditis with the Moderna vaccine.

Symptoms of the condition can include tiredness, irregular pulse, fever, chest pain, pain taking deep breaths and pain on the left hand side or in the centre of the chest, according to a statement on Wednesday by Sweden’s health authority, Folkhälsomyndigheten.

The number of cases recorded is very low, as is the risk of the side effect, the Danish Health Authority said in the statement.

Preliminary data from the Nordic study has been send to the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for assessment by its side effects committee.

The Danish Health Authority said it would subsequently follow the assessment from the EMA and decide whether to change current recommendations accordingly.

Sweden’s health authority announced earlier on Wednesday that it would pause the use of the Moderna vaccine for people born after 1991.

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HEALTH

Can you get a covid vaccine in Denmark if you’re not in the at-risk groups?

If you’re not in one of the ‘high risk’ categories, a covid booster can be hard to come by in Denmark.

Can you get a covid vaccine in Denmark if you’re not in the at-risk groups?

A growing body of research indicates that keeping your covid vaccination up to date decreases your risk of long covid—a range of cardiovascular, neurological and respiratory symptoms that can be debilitating. But accessing the vaccine booster is not straightforward in Denmark if you are not within one of the ‘risk groups’ for the national annual booster scheme.

Ahead of winter 2023, the Danish government made a significant change to its covid vaccination policy. From November 2022 until October 2023, anyone who wanted to get vaccinated could do so at the government vaccination centres for a modest fee.

But in October 2023, the Danish government said it was bowing out of the elective booster game, since “vaccines will be sold on the private market under normal market conditions,” the Danish Health Ministry (Sundhedsministeriet) wrote.

READ ALSO: Covid-19 no longer given special status in Denmark

But it seems pharmacies and private clinics didn’t step in to fill the void the way the Danish government expected—although public health websites linked out to the Apotek pharmacy chain as a resource for voluntary covid vaccination, Apotek pharmacy confirmed to the Local Denmark via email that they did not offer paid covid vaccines this year.

As of February 5th, the only option for a voluntary covid booster in the Greater Copenhagen metropolitan area is through Copenhagen Medical, a private clinic in Sankt Annæ Plads near Nyhavn that offers a range of travel vaccines and tests. The Pfizer booster costs 920 kroner.

Other companies offer paid vaccinations, but the closest clinics are at least 30 km away (for instance, the Danske Lægers Vaccinations Service offers paid covid vaccines at their Roskilde and Hillerød locations).

The public covid vaccine campaign ended on January 15th, by when 1.1 million people had received a Covid vaccine during the 2023-2024 season in Denmark, according to the State Serum Institute, Denmark’s infectious disease agency.

SSI told the Local that it is unable to determine how many of those were through the public vaccination programme and how many were paid for at private clinics.

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