From September 30, people aged 12 to 17 who have received one BioNTech vaccine dose at least 14 days ago are deemed to have completed the COVID-19 jab course and complied with relevant social distancing requirements.
The Government made the announcement today on the recommendation of the Advisory Panel on COVID-19 Vaccines.
In general, completing a vaccination course refers to having received two doses of either the Sinovac or the BioNTech vaccine at least 14 days ago. According to the Prevention & Control of Disease (Requirements & Directions) (Business & Premises) Regulation, people such as staff of catering premises adopting the Type D mode of operation and cruise ship customers aged 16 or above must have finished the COVID-19 vaccination course before working at or entering relevant places.
On September 15, the Scientific Committee on Vaccine Preventable Diseases and the Scientific Committee on Emerging & Zoonotic Diseases under the Centre for Health Protection, together with the Chief Executive’s expert advisory panel, after balancing the risks and benefits in light of the local epidemic situation, recommended that those aged 12 to 17 receive one BioNTech vaccine dose.
At a meeting today, the Advisory Panel on COVID-19 Vaccines agreed with the above proposal.
The Government, on the panel's advice, announced the adjustment to social distancing measures with respect to the COVID-19 vaccination requirement for those aged 12 to 17.
Furthermore, the panel considered that, under the BioNTech vaccine’s current usage conditions, the Government should continue to monitor the global and local epidemic situation and relevant clinical data on vaccines, and advised the Government to consider undertaking a scientific study on the efficacy of providing the second BioNTech dose to youth in that age group.
It is still considered that the benefits of the BioNTech and Sinovac vaccines outweigh the risks, and there is no need to propose changes to their use, the panel added.
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