Publicly funded COVID-19 vaccination for young children has added "re-vaccinators". Li Bingying urges people not to forget 2 doses of influenza

Li Bingying said that vaccinating children with 2 doses of vaccine can increase protection by 15% to 28% compared with just 1 dose.

The weather has turned colder recently, and respiratory viruses will become more active. The CDC will relax the conditions for children to receive publicly funded COVID-19 vaccines starting from November 5. Children who are over 6 months old and under 5 years old and have received 1 dose of COVID-19 vaccine before October this year are also eligible for publicly funded vaccines. Infectious diseases doctors also remind parents that if they are eligible for public funding, don’t forget to take their children to receive 2 doses of influenza vaccine.

Starting from October this year, the conditions for publicly funded COVID-19 vaccination for young children have been adjusted to "children aged 6 months to under 6 years old, who have not been vaccinated against COVID-19 in the past." Children aged over 6 months to under 5 years old must receive 2 doses with an interval of more than 28 days, and children aged 5 to under 6 years old must receive 1 dose.

Lin Mingcheng, deputy director of the Department of Disease Control and Prevention, said that starting from November 5, "children who have only received one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine before the start of the campaign in October this year" and "children aged over 6 months to under 5 years old" can also receive one dose of this season's COVID-19 vaccine at public expense.

Li Bingying, convener of the Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Advisory Committee of the CDC, reminded that preschool children are at high risk of severe influenza. Children 6 months to less than 9 years old who have not received influenza vaccination, and children 6 months to less than 3 years old who have received 1 dose of influenza vaccine before October this year should receive 2 doses of influenza vaccine, with an interval of at least 28 days (4 weeks).

Li Bingying emphasized that it is an international recommendation that children under 9 years old should receive 2 doses of influenza vaccine, and a comprehensive analysis of studies in 2025 pointed out that the protective effect of common influenza is about 50 to 60%. The protective effect of 2 doses of vaccine for children 6 months to under 9 years old is 15% higher than just 1 dose, and the protective effect of 2 doses of influenza vaccine for children under 3 years old is 28% higher than just 1 dose. Parents are urged not to forget to give their children the second dose of influenza vaccine.