The situation with the COVID-19 pandemic has continued to change and develop.

Health and safety signage in Disneyland

Recently, we’ve shared news about a county in California that will be requiring individuals to wear masks indoors soon, and we’ve seen a similar recommendation made by one Florida mayor. At the moment, the COVID-19 vaccine has been authorized for use by those as young as 12 years old. But, now we’ve got an update as to when a vaccine may be approved for those younger than 12.

According to NBC News, an official from the Food and Drug Administration has indicated that emergency authorization of a COVID-19 vaccine for those under the age of 12 could come this winter, specifically between early to mid-winter. NBC News notes that the Food and Drug Administration then hopes to “move quickly to full approval of the vaccine for this age group.”

Health and Safety Signage at Disneyland

Both Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech have already launched trials for their COVID-19 vaccines for kids under the age of 12. Pfizer has told NBC News that they expect to receive the results of their clinical trials of the vaccine on kids ages 5 through 11 in September. It could then apply for emergency use authorization.

What about data from clinical trials for kids younger than that? Pfizer has indicated that their data for kids ages 2 through 5 could arrive soon after that, but data on kids ages 6 months through 2 years may not arrive until October or November.

COVID-19 Vaccine Being Administered ©The Florida Channel | Courtesy of WTVT

An official from Moderna has indicated that their schedule would likely be similar to Pfizer’s. Dr. Buddy Creech, one of the primary researchers for the Moderna clinical trials in children said that he doesn’t expect there will be too much data for kids before the late fall, except maybe for those who are ages 6 through 11. He shared that the results for those 5 years old and younger might take longer and that there is still “a lot of work left to be done.”

Once the companies do obtain their results, officials from the Food and Drug Administration will need time to review them, which is why NBC News reports the authorization could come in the early to mid-winter.

Face Masks

Because of the amount of data the FDA is requesting regarding these trials for kids under 12, NBC News notes that it could make the process of getting full approval easier.

We’ll continue to look for more updates on this and let you know what we find.

Click here to see more about what one Central Florida mayor had to say about COVID-19 case rates and more.