CDC Panel Recommends Pfizer Vaccine For 5-11 Year Old Children

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday unanimously recommended a two-dose regimen of Pfizer-BionTech’s COVID-19 vaccine for children aged 5-11 years old.

The panel based their recommendation in part on modeling which suggests that vaccinating this agre group will reduce transmission of COVID in the US by 8% between now and March 2022.

14-0 vote —- not suprising after today’s conversation. CDC ACIP votes to recommend Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for children 5-11. Expect CDC Director Walensky will make it offical later today or tomorrow.

— Sarah Karlin-Smith (@SarahKarlin) November 2, 2021

For reference, 94 children aged 5-11 have died during the pandemic, out of 1.9 million children who have contracted the disease.

Committee member Sara Oliver claimed on Tuesday that vaccinating children would also ‘weaken the impact’ of any new variants, but would not block its spread.

“If we wait, we miss the chance to prevent” Covid-19 infections in children, said Dr. Matthew Daley, who acknowledged that there would be hesitancy among parents.

“I would just encourage you to talk to your child’s pediatrician … they can just help talk through this with you. But, we’re all here to listen,” he added.

Each Pfizer shot will contain 1/3 of the adult dose, according to Axios.