TheJakartaPost
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Success of vaccinations for minors hinges on parental awareness
The numbers of both new COVID-19 cases and deaths among minors have doubled over the past month, while the government has introduced emergency curbs to help mitigate the country’s most severe virus wave yet.
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A student shows her COVID-19 vaccination card at SMAN 20 state high school in Jakarta on July 1. The Health Ministry is now allowing children aged 12 to 17 to participate in the COVID-19 vaccination drive. (Antara/Indrianto Eko Suwarso)
P
resident Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s recent inclusion of minors aged 12 to 17 in the COVID-19 vaccination program aims to bring down a spike in pediatric cases in the country.
The numbers of both new cases and deaths among children have doubled over the past month, while the state has introduced new curbs to help mitigate the country’s most severe COVID-19 wave yet.
The government is convinced – and is seeking to convince others – that vaccination gives people of all ages the best chance of survival against a virus that has caused more than 61,000 deaths nationwide.
Vaccination fears
But while parents are eager to protect their children from the coronavirus, not all of them believe vaccination is the best solution.
Private sector employee Heti Agustiawati, 35, was particularly wary of getting her son vaccinated.
“Hearing the effects of the vaccine scares me because, for example, if you get vaccinated, there will definitely be [side] effects, whether it's a fever or becoming [COVID-19] positive,” she told The Jakarta Post on Monday.
