Moderna’s shot could be administered to America’s youngest population if the FDA approves it.
The company’s COVID-19 vaccine works for children under age 6, Moderna announced Wednesday.
The drug company wants to authorize two small-dose shots for this age group and is asking regulators in the Uniited States and Europe to approve it.
Moderna also hopes to have larger doses cleared for older children and teens. Early vaccine study results found that young children developed virus-fighting antibodies from the smaller-sized doses. However the vaccine was not very effective in combating Omicron.
The study wasn’t large enough to detect very rare side effects. The FDA has not approved Moderna’s teen’s shots yet, due to concerns of a rare vaccine side effect—heart inflammation sometimes occurring in mostly male, young adults.
