The
Late last week the FDA posted a similar analysis of Moderna’s shots for children under 6.
If regulators clear the shots by one or both companies, vaccinations could begin as soon as next week with the drugmakers ready to rapidly ship doses ordered by the government. Parents have been pressing federal officials for months for the opportunity to protect their smallest children as more adults shed masks and abandon other public health precautions.
While only about 3% of
The FDA said children who received Pfizer’s shots during testing developed high levels of virus-fighting antibodies expected to protect them against coronavirus. That’s the basic threshold needed to win FDA authorization. But additional testing turned up key differences, with stronger results for
Pfizer’s vaccine, given as a three-shot series, appeared 80% effective in preventing symptomatic COVID-19, although that calculation was based on just 10 cases diagnosed among study participants. The figure could change as Pfizer’s study continues.
Moderna’s two-dose series was only about 40% to 50% effective at preventing milder infections, though the two companies' shots were tested at different times during the pandemic, when different variants were circulating.
On Wednesday, the FDA will ask an independent panel of vaccine experts to debate both companies’ data before voting. The FDA is not required to follow the group’s recommendations, but the process is seen as a key step in publicly vetting the shots.
The FDA is expected to make its official decision shortly after Wednesday’s all-day meeting. The next step: the
It’s not clear how much demand there will initially be for the shots. A recent survey suggests only 1 in 5 parents of young children would get their kids vaccinated right away. Vaccines have been available since November for older
For the youngest children, each company is offering different dose sizes and number of shots, beginning at 6 months through 4 years for
The FDA currently allows Moderna’s vaccine to be used only in adults. But some countries allow full-size doses for teens and half-size shots for kids ages 6 to 11 — a step the FDA also is considering.
More than 30,000
The government allowed pharmacies and states to start placing orders for tot-sized doses last week, with 5 million initially available — half made by
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