The European Medicines Agency has recommended the use of the vaccine made by Pfizer and BioNTech be expanded to children aged 12 to 15, offering younger and less at-risk populations across the continent access to a Covid-19 jab for the first time during the pandemic.
The recommendation follows similar decisions by regulators in Canada and the US last month, as rich countries slowly approach their vaccination targets for adults and look to immunise as many people as possible.
The EMA’s recommendation was based on a study in more than 2,000 adolescents in the US that showed the vaccine was safe and effective.
Researchers will continue to monitor the jab’s long-term protection and safety in the children for another two years.
Most Covid-19 vaccines worldwide have been authorised for adults, who are at higher risk of severe disease and death from the coronavirus, but vaccinating children of all ages could be critical to stopping outbreaks, since some research has shown older children may play a role in spreading the virus even though they do not typically fall seriously ill.
