Netherlands Court Grants Boy Right to Covid Vaccine After Parental Row

By Sophia Banos-Lindner, Staff Reporter, The Pawprint

On September 24 a court in the Netherlands in Groningen gave a 12-year-old boy permission for a shot of the Covid vaccination so he can visit his grandmother who suffers from lung cancer. 

Children aged 12 to 17 can be vaccinated in the Netherlands with parental approval. In this case, the boy’s parents had two different opinions. His mother was for a vaccination while his father was against it because it may have an effect on the short and long term on the boy. 

The boy whose identity was not released, said in court “he is afraid that he could infect his grandmother, and he is convinced that if she gets infected, it would immediately be life-threatening for her.” The court understood his understandable concerns but the side effects are very rare, treatable and the court decided it was a “lack any factual foundation” and that’s why they approved the vaccination.