People protest against Finnish government's regulations to fight the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, in Helsinki, Finland March 20, 2021. (LEHTIKUVA / ANTTI AIMO-KOIVISTO VIA REUTERS)

HELSINKI / MOSCOW – The Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) has updated its recommendations on the use of COVID-19 vaccines for children younger than 12 years.

According to the updates, the health authority recommends COVID-19 vaccines for children aged five to eleven only if they belong to risk groups

In the future, it is no longer recommended to offer vaccinations to healthy children aged 5 to 11 because they have a very low risk of severe COVID-19 disease, Hanna Nohynek, chief physician at the THL, said.

According to the updates, the health authority recommends COVID-19 vaccines for children aged five to eleven only if they belong to risk groups.

Those aged between six months and four years who belong to risk groups should be vaccinated under individual medical supervision, the health authority said in a press release on Wednesday.

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Russia

Russia registered 5,631 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, bringing the nationwide tally to 21,550,982, said the official monitoring and response center on Wednesday.

The center said the nationwide death toll increased by 54 to 391,622, while the number of recoveries grew by 6,785 to 20,961,317.