Brisbane’s Melanie Stot told the Today show that she booked her 14-year-old son Fraser in to receive his first dose on Sunday.
Children Fraser’s age are not eligible to receive the vaccine yet, unless they have underlying health issues or are Indigenous.
Ms Stot explained that she found out she could still book an appointment for children aged between 12 and 15 using the Queensland Health website.
She said another mother told her about a glitch in the system.
After writing a “tongue-in-cheek” article for News Corp last week, Ms Stot said she had been contacted by hundreds of mothers trying to book their kids in for the jab.
Melanie Stot and her son Fraser, who was vaccinated despite being only 14. Picture: 9 NewsSource:Channel 9
“One mum told me that you can actually log back into your Queensland Health vaccination log in, and if your husband or wife have been vaccinated through the Queensland Health system, you can add your kids as dependants,” she said.
“Clearly, the system is up and ready to go for children 12 to 15 to be vaccinated,’ she added, noting several friends had been successful in booking an appointment this way.
Even after making an appointment for Fraser to be vaccinated, she thought she would be turned away once they arrived at the vaccination hub in South Bank.
“But they said every single time, ‘We’re not turning anyone away. We understand’. For some reason the announcement hasn’t been made yet,” Mr Stot said.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison last week said Australians must not continue to live in fear of Covid-19, but a major age group could be the thorn in the Prime Minister’s plan to reopen the nation.
Under the plan agreed to by national cabinet, Australia will begin a phased reopening once 70 per cent of the eligible population is fully vaccinated.
Parents claim a glitch in the system allowed them to book. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Bianca De MarchiSource:News Corp Australia
But the targets do not include children in the figure, raising concerns kids could be left behind as the country reopens.
Children younger than 15 are not eligible to receive the Covid-19 vaccine.
Last month the national medical regulator, the Therapeutic Goods Administration, approved the use of Pfizer in the 12 to 16 years age group.
Australia’s expert panel on vaccinations, ATAGI, is now considering whether the vaccine rollout should be expanded to include children aged 12 to 15.
“We will expect to see a more detailed plan by the end of this week … about mobilising that vaccination of 12 to 15-year-olds,” Mr Morrison said.
Queensland Health has been contacted for comment.