A COVID vaccine for kids under 5 might not get the green light until June
![Children at a daycare.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/uQXFdBPdPrVrKzLHgevBAH-415-80.jpg)
A COVID-19 vaccine for children under 5 has yet to be authorized, and the Biden administration may now wait until as late as June to do so, Politico reports Thursday, per individuals familiar with the matter.
Health officials had originally hoped to OK the shots at the beginning of the year. But now, regulators are inclined to wait until early summer, worried that authorizing one of the two possible vaccines on a "faster timetable" than the other would confuse the general public and perhaps undermine confidence in the shots' effectiveness, Politico writes, per sources.
Pfizer is likely to hold off on submitting its three-shot regimen for authorization until June, considering the FDA initially "rebuffed" its two-shot regimen for young children. Moderna, however, "plans to formally request authorization for its vaccine for children under six by the end of the month, meaning regulators could conceivably clear it for use by mid-May," Politico writes.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
![https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516-320-80.jpg)
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
With those two timetables in mind, the FDA is reportedly worried about "green-lighting Moderna's vaccine, only to potentially find out several weeks later that Pfizer's vaccine performs far better," reports Politico. Such a development could in turn spark backlash from parents who rushed out to get one shot rather than wait for the other, regulators argue.
That scenario doesn't, however, change the potentially worrisome optics of the FDA stalling on a vaccine it expects to authorize.
Plans could still change, sources have cautioned — the pandemic landscape might morph, for one thing, or the increasing pressure on the Biden administration to roll out a regimen could come to a head.
But as it stands, Politico says, the "delays have vexed officials who see the vaccine as key to convincing Americans that the administration has successfully reined in the pandemic."
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.
-
Why is China stockpiling resources?
The Explainer The superpower has been amassing huge reserves of commodities at great cost despite its economic downturn
By Richard Windsor, The Week UK Published
-
Paraguay's dangerous dalliance with cryptocurrency
Under The Radar Overheating Paraguayans are pushing back over power outages caused by illegal miners
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
The Week contest: Tattoo prediction
Puzzles and Quizzes
By The Week US Published
-
Brexit, Matt Hancock and black swans: five takeaways from Covid inquiry report
The Explainer UK was 'unprepared' for pandemic and government 'failed' citizens with flawed response, says damning report
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Should masks be here to stay?
Talking Points New York Governor Kathy Hochul proposed a mask ban. Here's why she wants one — and why it may not make sense.
By Anya Jaremko-Greenwold, The Week US Published
-
Covid might be to blame for an uptick in rare cancers
The explainer The virus may be making us more susceptible to certain cancers
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
Long Covid and chronic pain: is it all in the mind?
The Explainer 'Retraining the brain' could offer a solution for some long Covid sufferers
By The Week UK Published
-
Texas dairy worker gets bird flu from infected cow
Speed Read The virus has been spreading among cattle in Texas, Kansas, Michigan and New Mexico
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Dengue hits the Americas hard and early
Speed Read Puerto Rico has declared an epidemic as dengue cases surge
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Covid four years on: have we got over the pandemic?
Today's Big Question Brits suffering from both lockdown nostalgia and collective trauma that refuses to go away
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
US bans final type of asbestos
Speed Read Exposure to asbestos causes about 40,000 deaths in the U.S. each year
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published