The Latest: North Macedonia offers vaccines to 12 year olds

North Macedonia has started vaccinating children age 12 and over against the coronavirus on Monday in a bid to prevent a possible spike of COVID-19 in the fall, when the country's schools are scheduled to fully reopen

SKOPJE, North Macedonia -- North Macedonia began vaccinating children age 12 and over against the coronavirus on Monday in a bid to prevent a possible spike of COVID-19 in the fall, when the country plans to fully open schools. Health authorities said that only about 1,800 teenagers had booked appointments through an electronic health system for their first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, which authorities consider to be the safest for children. Authorities said the small number of young people registering to get vaccinated reflected parental concerns about potential side effects. North Macedonia's health minister, Venko Filipce, reiterated that mass immunization is the only way to end the pandemic and encouraged parents to have their children vaccinated.