UTAH, Oct. 26, 2021 (Gephardt Daily) — The Utah Department of Health on Tuesday announced the FDA’s independent advisory committee is recommending emergency use authorization of Pfizer’s pediatric COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5-11.
UDoH called the decision “a significant step in addressing the pandemic.”
The Utah Department of Health statement continues below:
There are approximately 365,000 Utah children between the ages of 5-11 who will be eligible for the vaccine. This represents one of the largest, new eligibility groups since we began vaccinating against the COVID-19 virus.
The FDA still needs to accept the advisory committee’s recommendation and the vaccine must also be authorized by the CDC before these doses can be administered. Vaccine providers should wait for these steps to be complete before administering COVID-19 vaccine doses to 5 to 11 year olds.
The CDC’s independent advisory committee (Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices) is scheduled to meet Nov. 2-3 to make its recommendation.
The Utah Department of Health has pre-ordered 109,000 pediatric doses, which will be shipped to providers throughout the state beginning Oct. 29. Additional pediatric doses will be available to order on a weekly basis beginning in early November. Providers should not administer these doses until the CDC provides its final recommendation.
The Pfizer pediatric vaccine is the same vaccine as the adult vaccine, but is packaged in a different dose (pediatric doses are 10 micrograms each, adult doses are 30 micrograms each). Providers cannot use existing Pfizer stock for 5-11 year old patients.
Pediatric doses can be administered by the same providers that administer adult COVID-19 vaccines, such as local health departments, high-volume vaccinations sites, pharmacies, and doctor’s offices (including pediatricians). Parents can find vaccine providers by visiting https://coronavirus.utah.gov/
Se necesitan pasos adicionales antes de que las dosis estén disponibles
Hay aproximadamente 365.000 niños de Utah de entre 5 y 11 años que podrán recibir la vacuna. Esto representa uno de los mayores grupos de elegibilidad nuevos desde que comenzamos a vacunar contra el virus COVID-19.
La vacuna pediátrica de Pfizer es la misma vacuna que la de los adultos, pero está envasada en una dosis diferente (las dosis pediátricas son de 10 microgramos cada una, las de los adultos son de 30 microgramos cada una). Los proveedores no pueden utilizar las dosis actuales de Pfizer para los pacientes de 5 a 11 años.
