The European Medicines Agency on Friday recommended authorizing Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 12 to 17, The Associated Press reports.
The move marks the first time the shot has been authorized for people under 18.
The EU drug regulator said research in more than 3,700 children aged 12 to 17 showed that the Moderna vaccine — already given the OK for adults across Europe — produced a comparable antibody response.
Until now, the vaccine made by Pfizer and German partner BioNTech has been the only option for children as young as 12 in North America and Europe.
The US Food and Drug Administration is currently considering whether to extend the use of the Moderna vaccine to the same age group. In May, it approved the Pfizer vaccines for 12-15-year-olds.
Hundreds of millions of Moderna doses already have been administered to adults, and the company says the two-dose vaccine is just as protective for adolescents. In a study of more than 3,700 12- to 17-year-olds, the vaccine triggered the same signs of immune protection, and no COVID-19 diagnoses arose in the vaccinated group compared with four cases among those given dummy shots.
The EU drug regulator said on Friday it would continue to monitor the safety and efficacy of the Moderna vaccine in children as it is used in European member countries.
(Arutz Sheva’s North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Arutz Sheva articles, however, is Israeli time.)