Pfizer says its vaccine IS safe and effective in low doses for kids aged 5-11

Pfizer says its vaccine IS safe and effective if administered in low doses for kids aged 5-11.

Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine is safe and effective for children ages 5 to 11 at one-third the dose used in adolescents and adults, according to a new study from the companies.

Many parents have been eagerly awaiting a vaccine for children, who have returned to school amidst a national wave of COVID-19 cases. Cases of COVID-19 in children have jumped about 240% since July.

Children are less likely to become severely ill from COVID-19 than adults, but they can catch and pass on the virus and occasionally suffer serious disease and long-term consequences.

The Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will need to sign off on the vaccine before it becomes available to children, but government officials have promised to quickly review the data.

The authorisation is likely to come within “a matter of weeks not months,” the FDA’s Dr Peter Marks told USA TODAY recently. “FDA is committed to going through those as quickly as we (can),” he said. “These data will not lay around when they come in.”

“Since July, pediatric cases of Covid-19 have risen by about 240 per cent in the US – underscoring the public health need for vaccination.

“These trial results provide a strong foundation for seeking authorization of our vaccine for children 5 to 11 years old, and we plan to submit them to the FDA and other regulators with urgency,” said Pfizer chief executive Albert Bourla said in a news release.

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