COVID Vaccines for Children Updated as Omicron Booster Shots Cleared for Kids as Young as 5

Kids as young as five can now receive the updated booster shots targeting the coronavirus's omicron variant after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) signed off on the COVID vaccines on Wednesday, October 12.

CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky gave the final OK hours after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized the updated booster shots. The FDA authorized Pfizer-BioNTech's modified COVID vaccine for children 5 to 11, while Moderna's vaccine was cleared for children 6 through 17.

The FDA said in a statement that children who have received a two-dose primary series of any COVID vaccine and those who have received a booster are eligible to get the updated boosters as long as two months have passed since they got their last dose.

Booster shots will target the dangerous omicron subvariants

Both COVID vaccines target the BA.4 and BA.5 omicron subvariants, in addition to the original strain of the coronavirus, in a single shot, according to NBC News. The CDC said BA.5 remains the dominant strain in the United States, making up about 79 percent of all new COVID cases.

The FDA authorized the new vaccine of Pfizer in late August for use in people 12 and older, as well as Moderna's new COVID vaccine for adults aged 18 and older. The authorized shots replaced the first iteration of the boosters, which Pfizer and Moderna designed to target the original strain of the coronavirus.

Wednesday's much-awaited authorization comes as vaccination remains low in the United States for the two-dose primary series in young kids, although rates have improved. CDC data showed that only about 31 percent of kids ages 5 to 11 had received two doses of any COVID vaccine.

CDC data also revealed that the rollout of the updated boosters in older age groups had been off to a slow start. Only 11.5 million eligible people have received one booster shot in the U.S.

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Pandemic fatigue is the reason behind slow vaccine rollout in children

Sean O'Leary, vice chair of the committee on infectious diseases for the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), attributed the slow vaccine rollout in kids and adults to COVID pandemic fatigue and people wanting to move on.

O'Leary said that, unfortunately, they still see kids get sick with this. The authorization comes as the number of children under 18 diagnosed with COVID rises. AAP reports that nearly 40,700 child COVID cases were reported in the week ending on October 6, a slight increase in the number of cases over the prior week.

Experts said that it is important for people to receive the updated shots because the country could face yet another potential wave of COVID infections this coming winter.

O'Leary said that the boosters are important because data has shown that any COVID vaccine greatly decreases the risk of severe outcomes from the virus. He added that hospitalizations are preventable.

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