Baker Pushes Biden Administration For Child COVID Vaccinations Under 5

BOSTON — Gov. Charlie Baker and Gov. Jared Polis from Colorado are teaming up to push the Biden administration to review Moderna's emergency-use authorization of a COVID-19 vaccine for children under 5 years old.

Both governors argue that nearly 20 million children younger than five-years-old remain "unnecessarily" at risk for the virus.

The governors urged the Food and Drug Administration not to wait until June to review Moderna's application in line with Pfizer's expected vaccination for the same age group - but rather to push Moderna's review sooner.

"Waiting to combine applications from Moderna and Pfizer in an effort to 'prevent confusion' with staggered approvals would be ill advised and ultimately prevent our nation’s progress in fighting this virus," Baker and Polis wrote in a letter released Friday by the Baker administration.

The governors sent their letter to President Joe Biden last Thursday, in the midst of a rise in case numbers, indicating the risk young children have by not being protected by the vaccine.

"Parents have been told, over and over again, that COVID-19 vaccines are on the horizon for their children," Baker and Polis wrote. "They deserve the peace of mind that comes with being able to choose to protect their children through vaccination."

Moderna's emergency-use authorization request for children six months to six years was submitted to the FDA at the end of April. The FDA says they have put aside several dates in June to review Moderna's request alongside an expected application from Pfizer-BioNTech.