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Russia to begin next week clinical trials of anti-COVID-19 vaccine for children

This is for the age group of 6 to 11 years old

© Alexander Demianchuk/TASS

MOSCOW, March 27. /TASS/. Anti-coronavirus vaccination of children between six and 11 years in Russia will start next week within the frames of clinical trials, head of the Gamaleya Research Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology Alexander Gintsburg told TASS.

"I believe that clinical trials of a vaccine, particularly the vaccine against the coronavirus for children, will start next week," he said. "As of today, we have no list of children, but we have decided on the organization, which has the right to recruit volunteers and select hospitals to hold the clinical trials."

On January 24, the Russian Health Ministry issued a license for clinical tests of a Gamaleya Center’s coronavirus vaccine in children aged from 6 to 11. The ministry reported at that time that tests involving 2,200 children would be organized at three medical establishments in Moscow. Gintsburg announced back then that tests would require a period of three and a half months.

Earlier, the Russian government allocated more than 305.5 million rubles (almost $4 million at the exchange rate of that time) for the Gamaleya Center to test an anti-coronavirus vaccine for children aged 6-11 years. A total of 1,100 volunteers of this age group were expected to take part in the trials.

On November 24, 2021, the Russian Health Ministry authorized the Sputnik M COVID-19 vaccine for young people aged from 12 to 17, consisting of two components. Vaccination of children under the age of 15 requires parental consent, while young people aged over 15 can decide for themselves.

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