President Joe Biden is expected to deliver remarks on the authorization of COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5 to 11.
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A children’s hospital in Ohio received thousands of pediatric doses of the Pfizer BioNTech COVID vaccine on Tuesday.
The delivery to the Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus comes as an influential advisory panel voted Tuesday that all children ages 5 to 11 should get Pfizer’s pediatric COVID-19 shots, putting the U.S. on the brink of a major expansion of vaccinations.
The Food and Drug Administration already has approved kid-size doses – just a third of the amount given to teens and adults – as safe and effective for the younger age group.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention formally recommends who should receive FDA-cleared vaccines, and its advisers decided Pfizer’s shots should be opened to all 28 million children ages 5 to 11.
Kid-sized doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine were then given a green light from Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The actions mean sleepovers, playdates and family get-togethers put off for more than a year will be back on the agenda for many kids, along with a chance for fewer school interruptions.
