Yukon to offer COVID-19 vaccines for children aged 6 months to 5 years

The Yukon government is expanding eligibility for the COVID-19 vaccine to children between six months and five-years-old.

Appointments are expected to start the week of July 25 if doses for the age group arrive as scheduled, the government said in a news release Friday afternoon.

Expanding the eligibility for the vaccine was recommended by Dr. Sunit Ranade, Yukon's Chief Medical Officer of Health. It also follows Health Canada's approval of the Moderna Spikevax COVID-19 for children in that age group and is supported by the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI).

"The upcoming availability of the new vaccine for children under five is great news," said Ranade. "I encourage parents and caregivers to speak with their family physician, or other trusted medical provider, if they are unsure about their choice to immunize."

There are two doses to the vaccine. The government said the second dose should be administered eight weeks after the first one.

"Children between the ages of six months and fiveyears will get a dose of 25 micrograms each, which is half the dose authorized for children between the ages of five and 11," states the news release.

It added Whitehorse residents will be able to book appointments online starting July 21 while people living in rural Yukon can call their local health centre to get an appointment.