Officials authorized the booster shots for the age group from five months after their first jabs — the first booster for children as young as five — saying it offered “continued protection” and that the benefits “outweigh” the dangers.
It is despite many experts raising concerns about over-vaccinating children against COVID, suggesting they are at low risk of severe disease from the virus. A total of 1,045 children have died from COVID since March 2020, accounting for less than 0.1 of America’s one million fatalities. The vast majority of deaths are among over-65s.
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Official evaluations also suggest that three-quarters of children have already been infected with the virus to date, meaning they may have some form of natural immunity.
Pfizer’s vaccine is the first jab to be approved as a booster for children aged five to 11 years old. It is already available in two doses to everyone over five years old.
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The FDA is currently weighing whether to allow two shots of Moderna’s COVID jab for children aged six months to five years, with Pfizer has also requested. Moderna’s jab is currently approved for everyone 18 years old and over.
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Following today’s approval, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s top Committee on vaccines, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), will meet to review the approval on Thursday.
It will then recommend whether children should receive the shots, although it is widely expected to also give them the green light.
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Dr. Robert Califf, FDA commissioner, said about the approval Tuesday: “The FDA is authorizing the use of a single booster dose of the Pfizer COVID vaccine for children five through 11 years of age to provide continued protection against COVID.
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“Vaccination continues to be the most effective way to prevent COVID and its severe consequences, and it is safe.
“If your child is eligible for the Pfizer COVID vaccine and has not yet received their primary series, getting them vaccinated can help protect them from the potentially severe consequences that can occur, such as hospitalization and death.”
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Dr. Peter Marks, the director of the FDA center behind vaccine approval, said: “Emerging data suggests that vaccine effectiveness against COVID wanes after the second dose of the vaccine in all authorized populations.
“The FDA has determined that the known and potential benefits of a single booster dose of the Pfizer COVID vaccine for children five through 11 years of age at least five months after completing a primary series outweighs its known and potential risks.
“A booster dose can help provide continued protection against COVID in this and older age groups.”
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