AZ Is Ready As Kids Vaccine Approval Nears: State Health Officials

PHOENIX, AZ —State health officials have said Arizona will be ready to administer the COVID-19 vaccine to children under the age of 6 when the vaccine is approved for that age group, Arizona Public Media (AZPM) reported recently.

A major step toward approval of the vaccine for small children took place Wednesday when the Food and Drug Administration's outside vaccine advisers recommended Moderna's two-shot vaccine for the smallest children. The panel also was set to vote on Wednesday about whether to give the thumbs up to Pfizer's three-shot series, according to the Associated Press.

If the FDA agrees with its advisers and authorizes the shots, it will be up to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to decide on a formal recommendation. The CDC's advisers are scheduled to meet on Saturday.

If the CDC signs off, shots could be available as soon as Monday or Tuesday at doctor's offices, hospitals and pharmacies, the AP reported.

"This is a long-awaited vaccine," said Dr. Jay Portnoy of Children's Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri, who was a member of the FDA's panel of outside vaccine advisers. "There are so many parents who are absolutely desperate to get this vaccine and I think we owe it to them to give them a choice to have the vaccine if they want to."

According to AZPM, the Arizona Department of Health Services (AZDHS) has said that, pending final approval, more than 41,000 doses of the children's vaccine are due to arrive in the state next week for pediatricians and other healthcare providers.

AZDHS said pharmacies in the state also are scheduled to receive approximately 28,000 doses of the vaccine next week, and that more doses will arrive in the coming weeks.

The Associated Press reported that the Moderna shots are one-quarter the dose of the company's adult shots and are for ages 6 months through 5 years. Meanwhile, the Pfizer shots are just one-tenth of the adult dose and are for children 6 months to 4 years old.

FDA reviewers said both brands appear to be safe and effective for children as young as 6 months old. The reviewers said that side effects, which include fever and fatigue, were generally minor after getting either brand of shot, and are less common in young children than in adults.

According to the World Health Organization, 12 countries already have been vaccinating children under the age of 5 using other brands.

Of course, it remains to be seen how many parents will want their youngest children vaccinated. The AP reported that just 29 percent of children ages 5 to 11 have been vaccinated since Pfizer's shots opened to them in November 2021.

Some parents will believe their children already have acquired immunity. In April, the CDC estimated that three-quarters of all children already had been infected.

COVID-19 generally is less dangerous for young children than for older kids and adults. However, there have been serious cases and some deaths in the youngest demographic.

While addressing Wednesday's FDA advisers' meeting, the FDA Vaccine Chief Dr. Peter Marks presented data showing a "quite troubling surge" in young children's hospitalizations during the omicron wave, according to the AP.

Marks said 442 children under the age of four had died during the pandemic. The number is much lower than adult deaths, but Marks said the statistic should not be dismissed in considering the need for vaccinating the youngest kids.

"Each child that's lost essentially fractures a family," Marks said.