The United States should have safety data on the vaccine in high school children in early fall, but probably not in younger children until early next year, Dr. Anthony Fauci said Friday.
Companies are just beginning testing younger age groups, but have been testing their vaccines on 12- to 17-year-olds, Fauci said in a White House briefing.
“You know from Pfizer that they started with the trial of 34,000 people up to 16-year-olds and then advanced to 12-year-olds. from 12 to 5 to 6 years, ”Fauci said.
“It will probably take a year to get information on this, probably until the first quarter,” added Fauci, who is director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and also chief medical adviser to the White House.
“However, we anticipate data on the people in secondary age, concretely the people of 12 to 17 years, at the beginning of the autumn. It may not exactly coincide with the first day of school, but at some point in the autumn we will have it, ”added Fauci.
Companies can test their vaccines with fewer children because they have adult safety and efficacy data, Fauci said. “Therefore, the conclusion of all this is as follows. It is very likely that at some point in the autumn we will have data that will give us the ability to say the comparable safety and efficacy in children aged 12 to 17 and 18, ”he added.
“But also, with the studies I just mentioned, to get the information needed to make the decision in elementary school children, it will almost certainly not be reduced until the first quarter of 2022.”
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