(Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) A government advisory panel Tuesday endorsed a second brand of COVID-19 vaccine for school-age children and teens.The Food and Drug Administration's outside experts voted unanimously that Moderna's vaccine is safe and effective enough to give kids ages 6 to 17.
If the FDA agrees, it would become the second option for those children, joining Pfizer's vaccine.The same FDA expert panel will meet Wednesday to consider tot-sized shots from Moderna and Pfizer for the littlest kids, those under 5.Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine has long been available for adults in the U.S.
and elsewhere and more than three dozen countries offer it to children, too. If the FDA authorizes Moderna's vaccine for teens and younger children, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will next decide whether to recommend the shots.The Massachusetts company is seeking clearance for two doses, and plans to later offer a booster.
Tuesday's vote was only for two doses — full-strength for 12-17 and half-sized doses for those 6-11."The data do support that the benefits outweigh the risks for both of these doses, in both of these age groups," said the CDC's Dr.