This decision comes amid the outbreak of the epidemic in the country, linked to the Omicron variant.
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US health officials on Monday (January 3) authorized the administration of a booster of Pfizer’s vaccine to adolescents aged 12 to 15 years. They have also reduced the time before the injection of this third dose from six to five months for all age groups.
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These decisions come at the height of the epidemic in the country, linked to the Omicron variant, and when schoolchildren are preparing to return to class after the end of year holidays.
The US Medicines Agency (FDA) has also authorized a booster dose of Pfizer-BioNtech’s vaccine for immunocompromised children between the ages of 5 and 11. These are, for example, those who have received an organ transplant, who must use a treatment that lowers their immune system to prevent rejection of their transplant. The Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) have yet to endorse this decision.
The FDA said it was relying in particular on data from Israel, where thousands of children and adolescents between the ages of 12 and 15 have already received this booster dose.
In addition, out of more than 4.1 million people aged 16 and over who received a booster there just five months after the first two injections, none “new safety issue” was not raised, the FDA also argued. “Allowing the vaccination with a booster after five months instead of six may provide better protection earlier against the variant Omicron, which is highly contagious.”, the agency wrote in a statement.