BREAKING: FDA Authorizes COVID-19 Shots for Children Five Years and Under

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has officially authorized the Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 shots for emergency use authorization in children as young as 6 months.

BREAKING: The FDA authorizes the Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 shots for emergency use authorization in children as young as 6 months.

— DailyNoah.com (@DailyNoahNews) June 17, 2022

Today, we authorized emergency use of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine and the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine for the prevention of COVID-19 to include use in children down to 6 months of age. https://t.co/DFnvVyQ8n6 pic.twitter.com/mXuN3oqZaa

— U.S. FDA (@US_FDA) June 17, 2022

The FDA issued this press release:

Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized emergency use of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine and the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine for the prevention of COVID-19 to include use in children down to 6 months of age.

• For the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine, the FDA amended the emergency use authorization (EUA) to include use of the vaccine in individuals 6 months through 17 years of age. The vaccine had been authorized for use in adults 18 years of age and older.
• For the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine, the FDA amended the EUA to include use of the vaccine in individuals 6 months through 4 years of age. The vaccine had been authorized for use in individuals 5 years of age and older.

“Many parents, caregivers and clinicians have been waiting for a vaccine for younger children and this action will help protect those down to 6 months of age. As we have seen with older age groups, we expect that the vaccines for younger children will provide protection from the most severe outcomes of COVID-19, such as hospitalization and death,” FDA Commissioner Dr. Robert M. Califf said in the release.

However, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s vaccine advisors must also vote to recommend the experimental shots before they’re given to children.

A formal vote from the CDC Advisory Panel is expected on Saturday.

CDC Director Rochelle Walensky must give the final recommendation.

The White House said Thursday that COVID-19 shots for America’s youngest children might begin next week.

So far, 49 states have pre-ordered the experimental shots for children five years and under.

Florida, under the direction of Gov. Ron DeSantis, is the lone state not to order the shots for the young age cohort.

DeSantis has repeatedly said that the state is opposed to the experimental shots for young children.

One State Has Yet to Order COVID-19 Shots For Children Under 5