Rome, Dec 17 (IANS): Italy began the process of vaccinating healthy children aged 5 to 11 years. The country has already vaccinated more than 85 per cent of children aged above 12 years.

The vaccination process of children aged 5 to 11 years began on Thursday. The Italian Medicines Agency (AIFA) approved vaccinations for those aged 5 to 11 years on December 1. However, before Thursday, the only children in this age group who received the vaccine were those with underlying health issues that would make them more vulnerable to coronavirus, Xinhua news agency reported.

Andrea Costa, Under-Secretary at the Ministry of Health, estimated on December 1 that general vaccination of this age group would begin after December 20, but in the end, the program got underway early.

The European Medicines Agency approved the use of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for those aged under 12 years on November 25. The dose administered to young children is a third of that given to adults; 10 micrograms compared to 30 micrograms. Two doses will be administered three weeks apart.

As of Thursday, more than 46 million people in Italy above the age of 12 had been fully vaccinated.