The Fort Worth Press - Pfizer seeks US approval of Covid vaccine for children under 5

USD -
AED 3.67295
AFN 68.452776
ALL 93.048382
AMD 390.177793
ANG 1.816976
AOA 911.999619
ARS 998.2263
AUD 1.54507
AWG 1.8
AZN 1.698754
BAM 1.853558
BBD 2.03554
BDT 120.47462
BGN 1.855803
BHD 0.376886
BIF 2977.069937
BMD 1
BND 1.347372
BOB 6.966716
BRL 5.825396
BSD 1.008198
BTN 85.007628
BWP 13.679442
BYN 3.299388
BYR 19600
BZD 2.031743
CAD 1.39969
CDF 2864.999771
CHF 0.887995
CLF 0.035848
CLP 989.153355
CNY 7.242201
CNH 7.254505
COP 4485.54
CRC 514.803442
CUC 1
CUP 26.5
CVE 104.500739
CZK 23.985696
DJF 179.528977
DKK 7.077685
DOP 60.720649
DZD 133.952972
EGP 49.372602
ERN 15
ETB 123.045036
EUR 0.948855
FJD 2.27535
FKP 0.789317
GBP 0.789359
GEL 2.730455
GGP 0.789317
GHS 16.281891
GIP 0.789317
GMD 70.999572
GNF 8685.114015
GTQ 7.788646
GYD 210.880869
HKD 7.781775
HNL 25.453011
HRK 7.133259
HTG 132.557454
HUF 387.514307
IDR 15925.803259
ILS 3.75528
IMP 0.789317
INR 84.414504
IQD 1320.673043
IRR 42092.50406
ISK 139.809873
JEP 0.789317
JMD 159.606118
JOD 0.709202
JPY 155.972502
KES 129.514885
KGS 86.199267
KHR 4084.665671
KMF 466.349913
KPW 900.000094
KRW 1405.411475
KWD 0.307686
KYD 0.839986
KZT 496.917168
LAK 22141.007898
LBP 90227.005275
LKR 294.668935
LRD 190.003315
LSL 18.110979
LTL 2.95274
LVL 0.60489
LYD 4.884614
MAD 10.024356
MDL 18.167086
MGA 4704.489757
MKD 58.413636
MMK 2097.99974
MNT 3398.000066
MOP 8.075803
MRU 40.134198
MUR 47.429998
MVR 15.449884
MWK 1748.169588
MXN 20.548297
MYR 4.484504
MZN 63.899993
NAD 18.111065
NGN 1684.480416
NIO 37.103201
NOK 11.15606
NPR 136.03721
NZD 1.704841
OMR 0.385008
PAB 1
PEN 3.821032
PGK 4.051574
PHP 58.819002
PKR 280.056171
PLN 4.113175
PYG 7867.983726
QAR 3.675652
RON 4.722896
RSD 111.038018
RUB 99.300479
RWF 1383.775103
SAR 3.757064
SBD 8.383555
SCR 13.620181
SDG 601.488769
SEK 11.00801
SGD 1.346067
SHP 0.789317
SLE 22.814977
SLL 20969.503157
SOS 576.121825
SRD 35.279862
STD 20697.981008
SVC 8.819614
SYP 2512.529518
SZL 18.116683
THB 35.003667
TJS 10.73969
TMT 3.51
TND 3.147935
TOP 2.389991
TRY 34.35863
TTD 6.849698
TWD 32.572978
TZS 2681.658374
UAH 41.641396
UGX 3672.512403
UYU 42.486895
UZS 12891.667497
VES 44.876473
VND 25393.60245
VUV 118.721977
WST 2.803992
XAF 622.573731
XAG 0.03345
XAU 0.000391
XCD 2.70255
XDR 0.753908
XOF 622.573731
XPF 113.258656
YER 249.774976
ZAR 18.282105
ZMK 9001.205525
ZMW 27.572126
ZWL 321.999592
  • RIO

    -0.5800

    60.62

    -0.96%

  • CMSC

    0.0700

    24.61

    +0.28%

  • BCC

    1.4200

    142.55

    +1%

  • SCS

    -0.3000

    13.37

    -2.24%

  • BTI

    0.1800

    35.42

    +0.51%

  • NGG

    -0.7800

    62.12

    -1.26%

  • RBGPF

    59.2500

    59.25

    +100%

  • CMSD

    -0.0200

    24.73

    -0.08%

  • RYCEF

    -0.0400

    7.07

    -0.57%

  • JRI

    0.0200

    13.24

    +0.15%

  • RELX

    -0.4700

    46.12

    -1.02%

  • BCE

    -0.4800

    27.21

    -1.76%

  • GSK

    -0.4100

    35.11

    -1.17%

  • VOD

    0.2800

    8.75

    +3.2%

  • AZN

    0.1000

    65.29

    +0.15%

  • BP

    0.4100

    28.57

    +1.44%

Pfizer seeks US approval of Covid vaccine for children under 5
Pfizer seeks US approval of Covid vaccine for children under 5

Pfizer seeks US approval of Covid vaccine for children under 5

Pfizer and BioNTech said Tuesday they are seeking emergency authorization from US health regulators for use of their Covid vaccine for children aged over six months and under five years.

Text size:

If the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorizes the two-shot regimen, it will become the first Covid vaccine available to this age group in the United States.

The companies said Tuesday that they started submitting their formal application "following a request" from the FDA, which seemingly wants to get the process moving quickly.

In a tweet soon after the announcement, the FDA said it will hold a meeting in two weeks, on February 15, to consider the request.

"Having a safe and effective vaccine available for children in this age group is a priority for the agency," said interim FDA head Janet Woodcock, who added that the FDA asked for the application "in light of the recent Omicron surge."

The companies are seeking authorization for only two doses of their vaccine, but believe a third will be needed "to achieve high levels of protection against current and potential future variants," Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said in a statement.

"If two doses are authorized, parents will have the opportunity to begin a Covid-19 vaccination series for their children while awaiting potential authorization of a third dose," he added.

To limit side effects for this young age group, Pfizer chose to significantly decrease the dosage of its vaccine, opting for only three micrograms per jab versus 30 for those over 12 years old, and 10 for ages five to 11.

The company's researchers concluded last fall that low doses of the vaccine provided protection in children up to two years old but not in those aged two to five, and announced in December they would add a third dose to their trials.

Data on the three-dose regimen is "expected in the coming months and will be submitted to the FDA to support a potential expansion" of this initial request, Pfizer and BioNTech said in the statement.

If the FDA authorizes the emergency use of the vaccine, an advisory committee for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will then meet to decide to recommend its use or not.

- Slower uptake among minors -

There are about 23 million children under the age of five in the United States, and two years after the pandemic began, many parents are waiting impatiently to vaccinate their young children against the coronavirus.

The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine was approved three months ago for emergency use in children from five to 11, but uptake has been relatively slow.

In that age group, only 30 percent have received at least one dose and around 22 percent are fully vaccinated, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Young children are less susceptible to falling seriously ill with Covid-19, but some nonetheless end up hospitalized by the virus.

New pediatric Covid hospitalizations hit a record high in the United States in December as the Omicron strain spread rapidly.

Some cases of the life-threatening illness MIS-C (multi-system inflammatory syndrome in children), have also been reported in young children with Covid.

CDC data shows that about 400 children aged four and under have died from Covid-19 in the United States since the pandemic began.

S.Rocha--TFWP