CDC panel recommends Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for kids 12-15

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CDC hosts virtual emergency meeting on Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine

A panel of experts advising the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) voted Wednesday to recommend use of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine among kids aged 12 to 15.

The vote was 14-0.

One committee member abstained from the vote.

The recommendation will now go before CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky for final approval.

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Committee members were charged with voting on the following question: "Should vaccination with Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine (2-doses, IM) be recommended for persons 12-15 years of age under an emergency use authorization?"

The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) convened to discuss use of the vaccine in kids aged 12 to 15 two days after the FDA expanded Pfizer’s emergency approval for use among kids as young as 12. 

The panel weighed data from Pfizer-BioNTech’s clinical trials involving over 20,000 participants, some 2,200 of which were aged 12 to 15.  The vaccine efficacy is 100% against symptomatic lab-confirmed COVID-19 in this age group.

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Some of the most common side effects were injection site pain, fatigue, headaches, chills, joint pain, muscle pain and fever. The data suggests the vaccine was well tolerated in this age group, Pfizer said.

A handful of states jumped ahead of the CDC’s committee vote to start offering Pfizer-BioNTech’s coronavirus vaccine to teens ages 12 to 15. Delaware, Georgia, Pennsylvania and Arkansas reportedly began offering the shots as soon as the FDA expanded the emergency use authorization.

The committee also discussed allowing coadministration of COVID-19 vaccines and other vaccines without regard to timing. Some experts expressed concern over a "double whammy" of side effects following coadministration, though increased side effects with coadministration is unknown, the committee said.

Fox News’ Alexandria Hein contributed to this report.