A new step in the fight against Covid-19. The United States started its vaccination campaign for children under 5 against Sars-CoV-2 on Tuesday, June 21. “It’s a historic step, a monumental step forward”welcomed US President Joe Biden. For “the first time in our fight against this pandemic, almost every American can have access to life-saving vaccines”he added from the White House.
The American Medicines Agency (FDA) had given the green light the previous week to Pfizer and Moderna vaccines for babies, children and adolescents from 6 months of age. Until then, only the Pfizer vaccine was authorized for children over five years old. In the aftermath, the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC), the country’s main health agency, recommended them on Saturday. For its part, the European Medicines Agency is currently examining the Moderna vaccine for its use in children under six and could follow the American decision.
It should be noted that the scale of the contaminations has resulted in more than 45,000 hospitalizations and nearly 500 deaths (out of more than a million in total) in the 0-4 year old group in the United States since the start of the pandemic.
