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Vaccination Nation: New omicron variants and vaccines for kids

WAMU 88.5 | By Arfie Ghedi
Published July 5, 2022 at 12:44 PM EDT
Officials cleared the Pfizer and Moderna Covid-19 vaccines for children aged five and younger last month, in a move President Joe Biden greeted as a "monumental step" in the fight against the virus.
Officials cleared the Pfizer and Moderna Covid-19 vaccines for children aged five and younger last month, in a move President Joe Biden greeted as a "monumental step" in the fight against the virus.

Kids as young as six months are now eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine. 

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have authorized both the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines for use in young kids. 

Meanwhile, the country continues to feel the effects of the omicron and its subvariants. BA.4 and BA.5 now account for over half of new COVID infections. 

In response, the FDA has encouraged drug makers Pfizer and Moderna to create boosters specifically targeting omicron and its variants to be distributed in the fall. 

We answer your questions about vaccinating young kids and navigating these new variants in this month’s installment of Vaccination Nation.

Copyright 2022 WAMU 88.5
Arfie Ghedi