By J. Greenwood
Unfortunately, children eleven and under have not been able to be vaccinated yet. That could soon be changing. Officials are hopeful recent trial data under review will provide boards the evidence they need to approve the vaccine for younger children.
Around December of last year, the first Covid-19 vaccines were being rolled out. These Covid vaccines have been effective in saving lives and preventing the spread of Covid-19. In addition to those already vaccinated, twenty-eight million children in the United States from ages five to eleven could soon be eligible for the Covid-19 vaccine.
The Federal Drug Administration’s independent committee and the US Food and Drug Administration will soon meet to discuss whether the BioNTech and Pfizer vaccines should be allowed for children eleven and under. Children around this age group are still growing and will have a different reaction to the vaccine. They did a trial that had 2,000 children among the group that got the vaccine. Pfizer stated that there were no harmful side effects. Potential worries included things like myocarditis, inflammation of the heart muscle, or inflammation of the lining around the heart. They are feeling very confident from these trials that they are ready to bring out these vaccines.
If the FDA committee voters are in favor, then the FDA will make a decision to authorize it. After that, the independent advisory committee and the US Centers for Disease Control will meet on November 2 and 3. The last step would fall to CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky, who will decide if they want to accept or adjust the committee’s recommendation. If Dr. Walensky signs off, children eleven and under will be able to get vaccines immediately.
This is, of course, welcome news to parents across the country. This development could help save kids’ lives and other peoples’ lives by stopping the further spread of Covid-19.
Categories: Covid-19, News, Science, World News
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