Coronavirus: Israeli teens will receive Pfizer vaccine if FDA approves it

Israel plans to give Pfizer Inc / BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine to children 12 to 15 years old after FDA approval, Health Minister Yuli Edelstein said on Wednesday. Pfizer Inc and BioNTech SE said on Wednesday that their COVID-19 vaccine was safe and effective and produced robust antibody responses in children ages 12 to 15, paving the way for them to apply for emergency use authorization in the United States within weeks . “Pfizer’s announcement is great news,” Yuli Edelstein said on social media. “There is nothing more in order now than rapid approval of more vaccine purchases (by Israel), so we can be ready to vaccinate immediately after FDA approval.”

Pfizer is hoping the group’s vaccinations could begin before the next school year, Albert Bourla, Pfizer chairman and chief executive officer, said in a statement.

In the trial of 2,260 adolescents aged 12 to 15, there were 18 cases of COVID-19 in the group that received a placebo vaccine and none in the group that received the vaccine, resulting in 100% effectiveness in preventing COVID-19, the companies said in a statement.

The vaccine was well tolerated, with side effects similar to those seen in people aged 16 to 25 in the adult trial. He did not list side effects for the younger group, but side effects from the adult trial were generally mild to moderate and included injection site pain, headache, fever, and pain. tiredness.

The companies also studied a subset of adolescents to measure the level of antibodies neutralizing the virus one month after the second dose and found it to be comparable to that of participants aged 16 to 25 in the trial. pivot in adults.

Bourla said the company plans to seek emergency clearance from the US Food and Drug Administration “in the coming weeks and other regulators around the world, in hopes of starting to vaccinate this age group. before the start of the next school year “.

Last week, companies gave the first doses of the vaccine in a series of trials testing the vaccine in young children, who will end up being given to children as young as 6 months old.Jerusalem Post staff contributed to this report.