CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- It's the news parents with young children have been waiting for: COVID-19 vaccines could be available for young children as early as November, according to Chicago's top doctor.
Chicago Department of Public Health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady said the Pfizer vaccine could be authorized for children younger than 12 by the late fall.
She made the comments during a livestream Thursday.
“If they decide to grant an emergency use authorization, I don’t see that coming before November at the earliest,” Dr. Arwady said.
Dr. Arwady added that the Food and Drug Administration could also decide to wait.
"I think it's possible for younger children, it's possible they can say, you know what we are not actually going to grant an emergency use authorization. It's not as much of an 'emergency.' It's possible they can wait for the full licensure, which would be more like January or February," Dr. Arwady said.
She said that decision depends on the number of COVID-19 cases in the country at the time.
"I don't think that's likely to happen if we are seeing a big surge," Dr. Arwady said.
Regardless, she said the three vaccine manufacturers have extended their trials to enroll more kids to make sure the shots will be safe.
Dr. Arwady said if the vaccines are approved for child use, it’ll be broken down in different age groups. She said likely children 6- to 11-years old would get approval first, followed by approval for children 2- to 5-years old, and then for all children 6-months and older.
“The FDA is very conservative around vaccines, especially childhood vaccines,” Dr. Arwady said. “We really want to make sure — especially given kids are less likely to have the severe outcomes [from COVID-19] — that these vaccines are absolutely safe, that they’re dosed appropriately, they’re having the right immune response. There’s a lot of things that just make it a little more complicated, and we’re being extra careful.”
Her estimates echo comments made by NIAID Director and Chief Medical Advisor to the President Dr. Anthony Fauci, who said he expects to see Pfizer submit trial data for pediatric vaccines by the end of this month or early October. Moderna will submit its data about a month later.
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