Is Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine finally on the way for kids under six?
The company said Wednesday its coronavirus vaccine generated a strong immune response in children between six months and six years old, NBC News reports. The vaccine was given to kids at a lower dose than is given to adults.
The data comes from a trial that consisted of about 6,900 children, and Moderna said the vaccine generated a "robust neutralizing antibody response" both in kids between six months and under two years old and kids between two and six years old. The "majority of adverse events were mild or moderate," the company also said.
"We believe these latest results from the KidCOVE study are good news for parents of children under 6 years of age," Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel said. "We now have clinical data on the performance of our vaccine from infants six months of age through older adults. Given the need for a vaccine against COVID-19 in infants and young children we are working with the U.S. FDA and regulators globally to submit these data as soon as possible."
The vaccine was about 43.7 percent effective against the Omicron variant in children between six months and two years old and 37.5 percent effective in kids between two and five years old.
Moderna now plans to seek emergency use authorization for the vaccine in kids under six from the FDA. NBC medical correspondent John Torres said on the Today show this FDA approval will be a "huge game-changer," and he speculated it could happen within the next month or so. "That's going to let us get back to more normal lives," Torres added.