France Advises Against Vaccinating Individuals Under 30 with Moderna

The French High Authority for Health (HAS) has retracted its recommendation for the use of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine in people under 30. This decision is based on recent research findings indicating that the Moderna vaccine significantly increases the risk of heart conditions such as myocarditis and pericarditis, as reported by kommersant.ru.

The studies have shown that both Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech vaccinations can lead to heart disease. However, the probability of inflammatory heart conditions arising from the Pfizer vaccine is five times lower. Despite the rare occurrence of such cases (26.7 per million for Pfizer and 131.6 per million for Moderna), French authorities have decided to limit the use of the Moderna vaccine to individuals aged 30 and above, as the first week following vaccination is when heart disease symptoms are most frequently observed in younger individuals aged 12-29.

As a result, HAS has recommended using the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine for vaccinating and revaccinating individuals under 30. The Moderna vaccine, regarded as more effective in combating COVID-19, will be used for vaccination and revaccination of those aged 30 and older.

It is worth noting that in Armenia, children aged 12 and older can also be vaccinated with the Moderna vaccine. According to a directive from Health Minister Anahit Avanesyan, a recent change in the guidelines for using the Moderna vaccine establishes that children can be vaccinated with the written consent of their parents or other representatives.