CANBERRA, April 9, 2022 (BSS/Xinhua) - Australia's medical regulator has
provisionally approved COVID-19 booster vaccines for adolescents as young as
12.

  The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) on Friday announced provisional
approval for Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine as a booster for Australians aged 12-
15, recommending that people in that age group get a booster six months after
their second vaccine dose.

   This decision follows the provisional approval granted to Pfizer for the
use of COVID-19 vaccine as a booster in individuals 18 years and older on
Oct. 26, 2021 and in individuals 16 and 17 years old on Jan. 27, 2022, said
TGA.

  It is the first vaccine approved for the age cohort but must also receive
approval from the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI)
before it can be rolled out. Regulatory approval of the booster dose for this
age group has also been granted in Israel, Britain and the United States, TGA
said in a statement.

  "ATAGI will provide advice shortly on whether this vaccine should be
included in the COVID-19 Vaccine program as the final step in the two green
light approval process."

  According to the data from the Department of Health, so far about 68.6
percent of the eligible population had received booster vaccines. And there
had been 6,526 total COVID-19 deaths and approximately 4.78 million confirmed
cases in Australia as of Friday afternoon.

  The rollout of a second booster dose for elderly and vulnerable Australians
began on Monday ahead of an expected winter spike in COVID-19 infections. On
Saturday, Australia reported more than 50,000 new COVID-19 cases and 24
deaths, including 10 in New South Wales (NSW), the country's most populous
state.