CDC advisors vote to recommend the use of Pfizer’s Covid vaccine aged 12 to 15 years

Dr. Sara Oliver of the CDC’s National Centers for Disease Control and Prevention explained to the Commission the risks and benefits of the vaccine.

“Adolescents aged 12-17 are at risk of serious illness from Covid-19,” Oliver said.

“So far, more than 1.5 million cases have been reported and more than 13,000 hospitalizations among adolescents aged 12 to 17 years,” she added.

A comparison of hospitalization rates from past annual influenza pandemics shows that more children and teens are hospitalized for Covid-19 than influenza, Oliver said.

“Covid’s overall hospitalization rate in this population is higher than the influenza-related hospitalization rate of the same age group during the 2009 H1N1 pandemic,” she said. Covid’s hospitalization rates for ages 12-17 were also significantly higher than for influenza in 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020, she said.

In addition, she said it became clear that teens and children were responsible for the spread of the virus.

“Adults living in families with children enrolled in full-time face-to-face school report Covid-19, such as illness, taste / smell loss, or SARS-CoV-2 test positive, within the last 14 days. The probability has increased. “”

In the early days of the pandemic, older people accounted for more cases, Oliver said. Children and teens now account for a greater proportion of infectious diseases as more adults are vaccinated.

“In April, 9% of cases were 12 to 17 years old, which is actually higher than adults aged 65 and over,” she told the ACIP conference.

“But note that the cases diagnosed and reported are underestimated,” she added. Adjusted estimates indicate that 22 million children aged 5 to 17 years are infected with the coronavirus, accounting for 19% of all infections, she said. The CDC states that the official number of cases of coronavirus diagnosed underestimates the actual number.

In the 12-17 year old group, 127 people died of Covid-19.

Oliver also said that 3,742 cases of pediatric multisystem inflammatory syndrome, or MIS-C, have been reported. This is a rare but serious complication of coronavirus infection that affects multiple organs. It affects the minority disproportionately. 63% of the reported cases were between black and Latino children. It kills 1% -2% of patients.

The vaccine has been shown to be safe and effective in clinical trials, Oliver said. “Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine clinical trials have shown efficacy against Covid-19 confirmed in a symptomatological laboratory. The efficacy was 100%,” she said.

Adverse events were very rare and there were no serious vaccine-related adverse events. The 2,200 children aged 12 to 15 years who participated in the clinical trial did not develop a severe allergic reaction called anaphylaxis.

“Increasing access to primary care providers servicing youth will leverage trusted providers to provide information and education about covid vaccines and vaccination against covids, Oliver said. There is an advantage to doing it. ”

The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) site is another resource for children, providing medical services to uninsured or other vulnerable groups and supporting vaccination efforts. ..

“Pharmacies and HRSA sites are widespread throughout the country and have the advantage of rapidly expanding to provide Covid vaccines for adolescent school-based vaccinations and reach adolescence in their communities. It is also a reliable source of information, “Oliver said.

She said federal health centers are another potential place to vaccinate children and teens.

CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky is expected to quickly approve the recommendations.

Most states await CDC approval, but some have allowed young youth vaccinations since Tuesday. Among them are some districts in Georgia and North Carolina.

The CDC also provided guidance to facilitate vaccination of children and teens.

Doctors and other clinicians were advised not to get the coronavirus vaccine within two weeks of other vaccines. But Dr. Kate Woodworth of the CDC’s Birth Defects Division said the advice has changed now.

“Because of the novelty of the Covid-19 vaccine, the previous recommendation was to administer only the Covid-19 vaccine at intervals of 14 days or more before and after administration of other vaccines to better understand the adverse events. “I did,” Woodworth said. ACIP.

“A wealth of experience with non-Covid-19 vaccines has shown that the profiles of immunogenicity and adverse events when given simultaneously and alone are generally similar,” she said. Added.

The CDC then added that it is not yet known if people are likely to respond if multiple vaccines are given with the Covid vaccine.

“For these reasons, the clinical considerations for co-administration have been updated to indicate that Covid-19 and other vaccines may be administered at any time. This is the same day. Includes co-administration of Covid-19 with other vaccines, as well as co-administration within 14 days. “

Woodworth says the number of childhood vaccinations is declining and many U.S. children need to catch up with regular vaccines, including vaccination against influenza, tetanus, meningitis, and the human papillomavirus (HPV). Said there is.

The American Academy of Pediatrics also approved the practice of vaccination together and urged parents to vaccinate their children against Covid-19 as soon as possible.

Pfizer said last week that it plans to apply for an emergency use authorization for the Covid-19 vaccine for children aged 2 to 11 in September. Research into the safety and efficacy of vaccines in children aged 6 months to 11 years is underway.

The FDA also scheduled a meeting of the Vaccines and Related Biologics Advisory Board on June 10 to discuss the potential for extending the EUA to children under the age of 12.