Brazil’s Health Minister criticizes haste; will submit children vaccination to public hearing

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Minister of Health Marcelo Queiroga on Monday said he will submit the issue of vaccination against Covid-19 of children aged 5 to 11 to a public hearing. The immunization of this age group with pediatric doses from Pfizer has been approved by the Brazilian Health Regulatory Agency (ANVISA), but there is still no date to start in Brazil.

“We will submit this issue to a public hearing so that society will be informed about it and give its opinion. It’s not an election to determine who wants it or who doesn’t, it’s about listening to society,” Queiroga said upon arriving at the Ministry on Monday.

Queiroga said that the vaccination of children – criticized by President Jair Bolsonaro – needs to be discussed in depth and “without haste.”

“After the public hearing, all input will be discussed by the technical area. A public hearing will be held where this issue will be thoroughly discussed. Then the Ministry of Health will give its considerations or recommendations,” said the Health chief. “My concern today is to extend the second and booster doses,” he added.

The Minister was annoyed when asked by journalists about a deadline to begin vaccinating children. “Haste is the enemy of perfection. The main priority is safety. Do you have a child? When you have a child aged 5 to 11, you will understand why I am doing this,” he told a reporter.

“Scheduling is handled by the Ministry of Health. I will not abdicate any prerogative here,” he added, making it clear that the Ministry and ANVISA’s assessments are “distinct.”

This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error