Kids 5-11 can now get the bivalent, BA.5-targeting COVID booster
Enlarge / Avery, 6, and Aidan, 11, got their second Moderna COVID-19 vaccine doses at Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Medical Center on Friday, June 25, 2021, as part of the KidCOVE study evaluating the safety and efficacy of the Moderna vaccine in young children. (credit: Getty | MediaNews Group)
The US on Wednesday expanded access to the "updated" bivalent COVID-19 boosters targeting the omicron subvariant BA.5, now allowing children ages 5 to 11 to get a fall booster shot. Previously only adults and kids no younger than 12 were eligible.
In quick succession, the Food and Drug Administration this morning announced the expanded authorization of both the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna bivalent COVID-19 boosters, with the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Rochelle Walensky, endorsing that authorization-officially making the vaccines available to little arms-just a few hours later.
"This is a critical step in our fight against COVID-19," Walensky wrote in a tweet announcing her recommendation. "An updated vaccine can help bolster protection for our children this winter."