Should kids be vaccinated? Brazil turns to online survey

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BRASILIA – As satellite leaders trust connected nationalist wellness specialists to pass their decisions astir whether and however to vaccinate children against the coronavirus, Brazil's authorities is asking the online nationalist for guidance.

In caller weeks, President Jair Bolsonaro has staked retired a presumption against immunizing kids aged betwixt 5 and 11, and his medication took the antithetic measurement of creating a level that could validate a stance that is wide opposed by experts. Since his authorities connected Dec. 23 unveiled its online questionnaire connected the issue, the president's supporters person been highly engaged connected messaging apps trying to unit parents to plaything the results.

One wide shared station Wednesday connected the Telegram radical ‘Bolsonaro Army,’ which has astir 37,000 members, said the vaccine is experimental and suggested that receiving shots could beryllium much harmful than getting infected, though respective studies person shown the other is true. It besides included a nexus to the government’s survey, which different radical were posting on with instructions to relay to friends and family.

The rally for absorption resembles online behaviour observed earlier this month, which catapulted Bolsonaro to the apical of the heap successful TIME magazine’s readers canvass for Person of the Year, David Nemer, an adept connected Brazil’s far-right groups connected messaging apps, told The Associated Press. Bolsonaro garnered astir one-quarter of the much than 9 cardinal votes — astir triple that of the runner-up, erstwhile U.S. President Donald Trump. The magazine's editors alternatively chose Elon Musk arsenic 2021 Person of the Year.

This time, however, online efforts are aimed astatine thing acold much important than bestowing an honorific connected the president. The survey, which concludes Jan. 2, stands to signifier vaccination argumentation successful Latin America’s astir populous nation, location to 20 cardinal kids aged 5 to 11. Health Minister Marcelo Queiroga has said they volition soon beryllium eligible for vaccination, but survey results volition assistance find guidelines including whether shots could lone beryllium administered with parental consent and a doctor’s prescription.

“This is simply a instrumentality of democracy, it widens the treatment connected the taxable and it volition bring much easiness for parents truthful they tin instrumentality their children to immunize against COVID-19,” Queiroga said Wednesday.

Health experts, for their part, are aghast. Some Brazilian states’ wellness secretariats person already pledged to disregard immoderate wellness ministry guidelines connected puerility vaccination if based connected the nationalist consultation. Gonzalo Vecina, laminitis and manager of Brazil’s wellness regulator betwixt 1999 and 2003, says nationalist consultation connected vaccines is “unprecedented”.

“Bolsonaro is against the vaccine and his employee, the wellness minister, believes that wellness is simply a substance of nationalist opinion. It is simply a spurious and nonsensical approach,” Vecina told the AP. “If lone deniers nonstop their sentiment successful the nationalist consultation, is the authorities going to accidental that the vaccine doesn't person to beryllium used?”

Denialism from the top successful Brazil is simply a spot of deja vu. Even arsenic COVID-19 exploded, driving the nation's decease toll to the 2nd highest successful the world, Bolsonaro spent months sowing doubts astir vaccines and was obstinate successful his refusal to get a shot. He has cited the information helium contracted the coronavirus successful 2020 to claim, incorrectly, that helium is already immune, and routinely characterizes vaccination arsenic an contented of idiosyncratic prime alternatively than a means for ensuring the communal good.

So erstwhile Brazil’s wellness regulator authorized usage of Pfizer's changeable for children connected Dec. 16, Bolsonaro was stunned.

“Kids are thing precise serious,” helium said the aforesaid nighttime successful his play unrecorded broadcast connected societal media. “We don’t cognize astir imaginable adverse aboriginal effects. It’s unbelievable — I’m atrocious — what the bureau did. Unbelievable.”

A survey released Thursday by U.S. wellness authorities confirmed that superior broadside effects from the Pfizer vaccine successful children ages 5 to 11 are rare. The findings were based connected astir 8 cardinal doses dispensed to youngsters successful that property group.

Bolsonaro added that helium would sanction and exposure the nationalist servants who issued the approval, prompting a national representing wellness bureau workers to explicit interest astir online maltreatment oregon adjacent carnal attacks.

Despite fervent enactment among his base, Bolsonaro’s anti-vaccine stance hasn’t gained arsenic overmuch traction successful Brazil — which has a proud past of inoculation campaigns — arsenic successful the U.S. More than two-thirds of Brazilians are afloat vaccinated, arsenic compared to 63% successful the U.S., according to Johns Hopkins University's vaccination tracker, though American children person been eligible for shots since aboriginal November.

In neighboring Argentina, the authorities has allowed kids 12 years and older to beryllium vaccinated since August, and much precocious began giving shots to children arsenic young arsenic 3. In the look of consequent criticism, the nation’s wellness ministry cited the proposal of the nation’s relation of pediatricians. In Chile, two-thirds of kids aged betwixt 3 and 17 person already received some their shots, aft the nation’s wellness regulator analyzed an immunization survey of 100 cardinal children.

For the clip being, Mexico isn’t vaccinating children but those 12 years oregon older with illnesses that enactment them astatine greater risk. Mexico’s constituent antheral for the pandemic, Hugo López-Gatell, said Tuesday the World Health Organization hasn’t recommended vaccinating children aged 5 to 11, and that countries with ample vaccine coverage, similar Mexico, shouldn’t vaccinate kids until processing nations with constricted sum tin rise their big vaccination rates.

In Brazil, Mauro Paulino, wide manager of salient pollster Datafolha, said 1 occupation with the Bolsonaro government's survey is the mode questions are framed, repeatedly asking interviewees, “Do you hold that...?” Such nonaccomplishment to contiguous questions neutrally tin induce responses.

“Datafolha ever gives the 2 imaginable alternatives: whether the interviewee agrees oregon disagrees with the statement,” helium said. "Both sides of the question are necessary."

Bolsonaro told supporters connected Tuesday that unit to inoculate kids stems from the “vaccine lobby” — a veiled notation to pharmaceutical companies. Many Bolsonaro supporters the adjacent time were sharing a station from the Telegram radical “Doctors for life,” which has much than 60,000 followers and often echoes the president’s unscientific COVID-19 advice.

One Telegram station with much than 200,000 shares said nary kid should beryllium a guinea pig for the pharmaceutical industry. Tens of millions of doses person been administered to children astir the world, with uncommon superior broadside effects. While fewer children dice from COVID-19, vaccinating them tin minimize the virus’ dispersed successful society.

Bolsonaro besides said this week helium won't let the vaccination of his 11-year-old daughter. Meantime, his woman and person sons received their shots, on with astatine slightest 16 of his 22 ministers — including Health Minister Queiroga.

Politicians from the enactment Bolsonaro joined to tally for re-election successful 2022 person advocated not lone for vaccination, but besides requiring impervious of vaccination to participate definite places — different expected infringement connected idiosyncratic liberties Bolsonaro opposes.

His chaotic absorption of the pandemic since its onset has been roundly criticized, and a Senate investigative committee recommended helium look transgression charges.

But the president and his die-hard supporters connected Telegram and WhatsApp aren’t backing down. Many interpreted his comments regarding his girl successful peculiar arsenic a directive to cull the immunization of kids.

“There are a batch of messages astir the dangers of vaccines, studies that aren’t true,” said Nemer, the adept connected far-right groups, and an adjunct prof of media studies astatine the University of Virginia. “They’re bringing a batch of disinformation astir vaccinating kids to motivate the base.”

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AP journalists Savarese reported from Sao Paulo and Silva de Sousa from Rio de Janeiro. Eva Vergara contributed from Santiago, Chile, Debora Rey from Buenos Aires and Chris Sherman from Mexico City.

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