It has been announced today that The European Medicines Agency (EMA) is evaluating the possible administration in the European Union (EU) of Moderna's covid-19 vaccine to children aged 6 to 11.
In a press release, the EMA says it has begun "to evaluate an application to extend the use of Moderna's covid-19 Spikevax vaccine to children aged 6 to 11 years."
The EMA's Human Medicines Committee will review data on the vaccine, including the results of an ongoing clinical study involving children aged 6 to 11 years, to decide whether or not to recommend extending its use.
The EMA anticipates issuing an opinion within two months.
Spikevax is a vaccine for the prevention of covid-19, currently authorised for use in people 12 years of age and older. It contains a molecule called messenger RNA (mRNA) which contains 'instructions' for making a protein, known as the spike protein, which is naturally present in SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. The vaccine works by preparing the body to defend itself against SARS-CoV-2.
On October 18th, the agency also started a similar evaluation process for Pfizer/BioNTech's Cominarty vaccine.
