Pfizer announced on Friday that it will petition federal regulators for the authorization to administer its coronavirus vaccines to children age 12 to 15.
“Pending regulatory decision, our hope is to make this vaccine available to the 12-15-year-old age group before the start of the 2021 school year,” Pfizer said.
PFIZER STUDY SHOWS 100% EFFICACY IN ADOLESCENT COVID-19 VACCINATIONS
The drugmaker announced last week that its two-dose vaccine, initially authorized for use in people 16 and older, was safe and 100% effective for adolescents. The trial enrolled 2,260 adolescents in that age range, resulting in 18 cases among those in the placebo group and none in the group that received the vaccine.
“We plan to request similar rulings by other regulatory authorities worldwide in coming days,” the company added.
The reactions to the shots in the younger group were similar to those seen among the 16- to 25-year-old enrollees, such as pain at the injection site, fever, and fatigue.
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Pfizer has also begun trials for safety and efficacy in babies as young as six months to children as old as 11. Other vaccine makers, such as Moderna and Johnson & Johnson, have begun similar studies to determine how the dosage should be administered to young children, who have been deemed most likely to experience only mild illness due to the coronavirus infection.
