Canada is authorizing the use of the Pfizer vaccine for use in children ages 12 to 15, the Ministry of Health said. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is expected to take a similar step "very soon," U.S. health officials said.
Supriya Sharma, a senior adviser at the Canadian ministry, said the Pfizer vaccine, produced with German partner BioNTech, was safe and effective in the younger age group.
"We are starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel," she told a news conference.
Two days ago, the New York Times reported that the FDA was preparing to authorize the Covid Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine for teens between the ages of 12 and 15 by early next week.
The FDA said it was continuing to review the vaccine authorization, in a response to Reuters, but gave no further details. The director of the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC), Rochelle Walensky, said in April that the vaccine could be approved by mid-May. The Pfizer vaccine is currently given to people over the age of 16.
Pfizer and Moderna have also started testing on younger children, from six months to 11 years old. Both companies have said they hope to be able to vaccinate children under 11 as soon as possible, likely in early 2022.
- Can vaccinated Albanian citizens travel freely?
- The Committee of Experts announces the change of anti-Covid measures
- Experts say the pandemic could not end if the world did not help India
- 'Covid nails' may be a sign that you have passed the coronavirus
- The Minister of Health talks about the liberation of socio-economic life
Burimet: Guardian, Reuters
