The guidance came in a memo from the COVID-19 Vaccine Technical Advisory Group (CVTAG) to Dr Bloomfield dated 9 December 2021. It strongly recommended against vaccinating those under 18 with two doses, noting that a single dose provides effective protection. The advisory group flagged the potential myocarditis risk associated with a second dose, referencing earlier guidance that stated “Younger age groups are more at risk than older age groups of myocarditis after the second dose of the Pfizer vaccine…”
This elevated risk was later confirmed in a New Zealand study published on 9 August 2023, which found that the highest adverse incidents post-vaccination occurred in the 5–19 age group following the second dose, estimating five additional myo/pericarditis cases per 100,000 vaccinated.
When asked by Heather du Plessis-Allan on Newstalk ZB why this advice had been ignored, the then COVID Minister, Chris Hipkins, denied ever receiving it. If that is true, why didn’t the DirectorGeneral of Health at the time, the now Sir Ashley Bloomfield, pass on this critical advice to the Minister?