German vaccine panel recommends COVID shot only for sick small children

FILE PHOTO: Syringes with children's doses of Comirnaty, the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) are seen at a practice of a children's doctor, as Germany rolls out vaccinations for the five to eleven year old children, in Bonn, Germany, December 15, 2021. REUTERS/Wolfgang Rattay

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Germany's vaccine advisory panel on Thursday recommended that Pfizer-BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine for children from six months to four years should only be given routinely to those at risk of severe disease from the infection.

The head of the panel of 18 appointees, known as STIKO, said there was no clear case for broad use, citing a lack of data to rule out any rare side effects and no signs of the infection causing severe illness in otherwise healthy children.