Pfizer and BioNTech are seeking Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for an updated COVID-19 bivalent “booster” vaccine for children ages 6 months to 4 years old. Pfizer on Monday said if the bivalent booster receives EUA, children in this age group will receive two doses of the original COVID-19 vaccine, followed by a dose of the “updated” vaccine targeting Omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5.
Previously, children under age 5 could receive a three-dose series of the original COVID-19 vaccine. However, since the shots received EUA in June, only 2% of children under 2 and about 4% of 2- to 4-year-olds have received their primary doses, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The bivalent vaccine is currently authorized as a “booster” dose in the U.S. and the EU, for children 5 and older.Bivalent boosters are ‘obsolete,’ come with ‘very concerning side effects’.
Drs. Peter McCullough, Meryl Nass and Michelle Perro were critical of Pfizer and BioNTech’s bid to receive EUA for the bivalent booster for young children. Nass told The Defender: “There was never anything to recommend the bivalent boosters before they were given an EUA for adults on August 31. It is unconscionable, given what we know about the poor performance of the existing vaccines and their very concerning side effects, that FDA [U.S. Food and Drug Administration] and CDC went along with the new ‘boosters’ without a single human trial — and now the manufacturers want to give these untested vaccines to children as young as 6 months of age.”