An early clinical trial for Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine could soon be deemed safe for children ages 5 to 11.
And according to Food and Drug Administration’s Dr. Peter Marks in remarks to USA Today, authorization of its use could come in “a matter of weeks, and not months.”
Using a dosage that’s 1/3rd as potent as the adult version, more than 2,200 volunteers between ages 5-11 reportedly showed “strong immune response” to the coronavirus and its rapid-spreading “Delta” variant.
During Monday’s weekly COVID-19 update for the Commonwealth, Governor Andy Beshear specifically commented on Pfizer’s youthful breakthrough — which, if effective, could change the complexion of the state’s schools that haven’t had access to a vaccine for those 11 and younger.
Pfizer officials are currently submitting this first clinical trail information to the Center for Diseas Control and seeking emergency use, as cases in children have spiked more than 200 percent since July 1.
Beshear noted more than 13,700 Kentuckians received either their first or second dose of a vaccine over the weekend — bringing the state’s total to 2,652,144 with at least one shot. Five counties — Woodford, Franklin, Fayette, Campbell and Boone — have more than 70 percent of its population vaccinated, and Beshear also noted that Kentucky is currently the third-most vaccinated among its surrounding states…trailing only Illinois and Virginia.
Around positive vaccination news, Beshear added, came another tough weekend assessment: 88 more deaths attributed to COVID-19 and more than 8,500 new cases reported in the last 72 hours.
Among the dead mentioned by Beshear: a 51-year-old man from McCracken County, a 50-year-old man from Calloway County and a 44-year-old man from Christian County, bringing Kentucky’s death toll to 8,339 since metrics began in March 2020.
Beshear also noted that while positivity (12.18 percent), ICU use and hospitalizations are starting to plateau and even dip, ventilator use is increasing — not ideal when considering the rationing of monoclonal antibody infusions has begun nationwide.
As of Monday afternoon, less than 50 percent of the state’s 12-to-17-year-old population were vaccinated.