The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Covid vaccines while cancelling emergency use authorisations.
This move could make it harder for children to access the boosters under five.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. made this announcement, framing it as fulfilling his promise to rescind Covid-era policies while keeping it accessible for vulnerable people.
Kennedy Jr. highlighted four objectives: demanding placebo-controlled trials, preserving Covid shots for vulnerable people, ending vaccine mandates, and ending the emergency.
Taking to X (formerly Twitter), he wrote, “In a series of FDA actions today we accomplished all four.”
Under new restrictions, Covid vaccine authorisations are currently limited to higher-risk groups.
It is important to note that Moderna’s booster received approval for ages 6 months and older, Pfizer/BioNTech for ages 5 and up, and Novavax’s for ages 12 and older.
Pfizer’s latest booster, targeting SARS-CoV-2 sublineage LP.8.1, has been verified for people aged over 65 and for ages 5–64 with at least one risk factor.
Pfizer stated shipments would start immediately. However, the loss of authorisation for healthy children under 5 minimises their options, as Pfizer’s shot had been the main choice.
