SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS RADIO) – Pfizer has released initial findings from a clinical trial showing that a three dose vaccine regimen is 80% effective in children ages 6 months to 4 years old.
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Dr. Amesha Adalja, Senior Scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, told KCBS Radio's "Ask An Expert" this vaccine regimen will likely be approved for the young age group.
"I think this is going to be likely what the recommended vaccine will be, the three dose Pfizer regimen," Adalja said. "It does seem to provide pretty robust protection, much higher than what I think a lot of us expected with 80% in the age of omicron."
The vaccine will require three shots, which Adalja admitted is not a best case scenario. "We wanted the vaccine to be simple and easier to give to children and obviously a lower number of doses is better than a higher number of doses in terms of compliance and getting people protected, but it seems that the Pfizer data doesn't support a two dose regimen in those children," he explained.
When the vaccine does become available, a second hurdle health experts will have to overcome is vaccine hesitancy in parents.
"It is going to be difficult because if you look at the 5 to 11 age group, which is the next up group that has access to a vaccine, the uptake is maybe about 30%, so the majority of parents have not vaccinated their 5 to 11 year olds and I suspect even less will vaccinate their under fives," Adalja said.
For parents who are nervous to vaccinate their children, Adalja reassured the COVID-19 Pfizer vaccine is safe and effective. "I think the issue is that we have to really underscore the fact that when you think about COVID-19, if you've got a safe and effective vaccine that even prevents mild illness, because for most children the disease is mild, it's still worth it," he said.
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