FDA approves Pfizer vaccine for ages 12 and up

Officials in the Panhandle Health District say Monday’s decision by the Food and Drug Administration to approve Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for children over the age of 12 will not be given in North Idaho until approved by state agencies.

“We wait for people aged 12 to 15 to start administration [Idaho’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices], The Idaho Ministry of Health and the Governor have also given approval, “said Catherine Heuer, a spokeswoman for Panhandle Health.

The Pfizer vaccine was previously approved for children 16 years and older, while the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are approved for adults 18 years and older. The FDA’s decision was announced on Monday after government agencies reviewed Pfizer’s data.

“We recognize that the next important step is to have a vaccine that can be used throughout the pediatric population,” said Peter Marks, director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Immunization Commission must also approve new guidelines before the state begins control. The CDC will not meet until Wednesday before the decision.

However, since the vaccine was first made available in December, both the White House and Brad Little administrations have fought for herd immunity.

“Vaccines continue to be an important public health measure in combating the COVID-19 pandemic,” Marks said. “To date, the FDA has approved three COVID-19 vaccines for emergency use that meet strict standards for quality, safety, and efficacy.”

FDA approval may not be the last to be issued to Pfizer. According to Pfizer Chairman Albert Bourla, the drug giant will seek an emergency use authorization for children over the age of two this fall, perhaps as early as September.

North Idaho Update

Approval is due to the daily COVID-19 case count in North Aidaho going in the wrong direction. Over the past two weeks, more than 500 new cases have been reported in the five northernmost counties of Idaho.

The highest of 76 new cases on April 26 is far from the daily record 410 of the health district on December 9, last year, but the district’s daily increase in case numbers could signal a potential setback. I am concerned that there is. Heuer said Monday’s FDA decision would help.

“There are more and more cases of concern,” says Hoyer. “It is helpful to approve people over the age of 12 to start vaccination.”

However, an increase in positive tests does not necessarily lead to case severity, at least locally. Since April 26, local hospitalizations have been declining and the number of beds occupied has decreased from 33 to 23. The first two weeks of December were 25, but in the same two weeks one died of COVID-19 in North Aidaho. Pandemic height.

The situation for COVID-19 in other parts of the world is much more severe. According to the WHO, health officials around the world have reported more than 300,000 daily infections and 3,700 deaths per day in India, the world’s second most densely populated country. We are calling for the border to be closed because we have crossed it.

Local authorities hope that Pfizer’s approval of the pediatric population will help the herd immunity competition. A total of 65,677 have been fully vaccinated in the five northernmost counties, with an additional 9,929 awaiting a second vaccination.

To date, 38 percent of the Panhandle Health District population over the age of 16 has been vaccinated.

Hoyer added that vaccination is just one tool in the North Idaho toolbox to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

“We all knew it and are eager to come back to life,” she said. “But the pandemic isn’t over. We all help by continuing to take precautions such as washing hands, avoiding crowds, vaccination, staying home when sick, and masking in public. can do.”