FDA advisors approve Pfizer, Moderna vaccines for young children
SAN FRANCISCO - With an advisory panel vote, the Food and Drug Administration is poised to authorize the Moderna and Pfizer COVID vaccines for young children.
It's a decision a lot of parents have been waiting for.
After that unanimous vote Wednesday, the FDA is expected to grant emergency use within days. For Pfizer, it would be a three-dose vaccine for children 6 months through 4 years old. For Moderna, it would be a two-dose vaccine for children 6 months through 5 years.
"I, for one, have grandchildren in this age group," said UCSF Epidemiologist George Rutherford. "I think they and their parents have been waiting for this and so I think it makes perfect sense to go ahead."
Dr. Rutherford calls it an important step, especially for families who have been waiting for this chance.
"I suspect that among certain people, probably in the Bay Area, it will be a pretty healthy appetite," Rutherford said of vaccine demand.
"Absolutely, I always discuss vaccines with my pediatrician," said Michelle Watts with her young son in Berkeley. "I'm open to doing what she thinks is best."
Watts says she's been thinking about this for her son, but still hasn't made a decision.
"California says it's not going to do school mandates for at least a year," Rutherford added. "So we will have to see."
So one question is how many parents opt for the shots. Another is what that might mean for the pandemic at large.
"It's like a fire," Rutherford explained. "To the extent that we get rid of brush that's susceptible. These are younger children who are susceptible, the less transmission there will be. The less disease there will be."
These shots will be delivered in pediatricians' offices and local health care clinics, and millions of doses have already been ordered around the country. So shots will be available as soon as they can be given, possibly as soon as Tuesday.