The Food and Drug Administration announced Friday that it authorized the COVID-19 vaccines developed by BioNTech SE BNTX, -3.10% /Pfizer Inc. PFE, -2.00% and Moderna Inc. MRNA, +5.74% for children as young as six months old. The regulator said Moderna’s two-dose vaccine is now authorized for children between the ages of 6 months old and 17 years old. It was previously authorized and is now fully approved for adults. The BioNTech/Pfizer shot, which had already been authorized for older children and teens, is now authorized in children between 6 months old through 5 years old. It has already been fully approved for those 16 years old and older. The BioNTech/Pfizer vaccine for young children requires three shots using dosing specific to this age group. Earlier this week, an advisory committee to the FDA unanimously recommended that the benefits of both vaccines outweigh the risks for the nation’s youngest children.
