The sick and twisted world clown world seems even more upside down than usual after one Big Pharma company publicly lobbied for FDA approval of coronavirus vaccines for children under the age of six.
COVID-19 vaccine developer Moderna has requested expanded authorization to give its two-dose vaccine to children ages 5 and under, a highly anticipated step toward vaccinating the only age group remaining ineligible.
The company said that in a study consisting of 6,700 children under 6, two 25-microgram doses of the vaccine generated an amount of coronavirus-fighting antibodies equivalent to or better than the response for young adults earlier in the pandemic.
“We are proud to share that we have initiated our EUA submission for authorization for our COVID-19 vaccine for young children,” Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel said.
“We believe mRNA-1273 will be able to safely protect these children against SARS-CoV-2, which is so important in our continued fight against COVID-19 and will be especially welcomed by parents and caregivers.”
The vaccine regimen’s level of efficacy at protecting against symptomatic omicron infection was not as high as hoped, just as efficacy against omicron was lower in adult vaccine doses. Scientists attribute the lower level of efficacy to omicron’s vaccine-evading power.
Moderna reported that the two-dose regimen was 51% effective in preventing illness in children between 6 months old and 2 years old and 37% effective in children ages 2 to 5. Protection against illness so severe it lands a child in the hospital is likely much higher, but there were no cases in the trial of such severe illness, which is rare in children.
The Food and Drug Administration is expected to convene its committee of vaccine experts to consider Moderna’s application, though that meeting’s date has not been announced. The agency could wait to review Moderna’s application until it receives one from Pfizer and its partner company BioNTech for a three-dose vaccine for young children. In that case, parents could be waiting for the shots as late as June, Politico reported last week.
COVID-19 generally has not been as deadly in children as it has been in older adults, especially seniors. A recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed that 75% of children ages 11 and younger have coronavirus antibodies from prior exposure.
Let’s shoot ’em up anyway!
Author: Mitchell Avignon
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