Harv's Corner 09/01/2025

Harv's Corner

Limiting COVID-19 shots for young adults and prohibiting them for children under five is an ill-advised strategy that exposes both groups to preventable health risks. For young adults, vaccination is critical for preventing hospitalization and the debilitating effects of Long COVID. For young children, the vaccines are a safe and effective way to protect against severe illness and rare but serious complications like MIS-C. (multisystem inflammatory syndrome-children)  Denying this protection leaves younger populations needlessly vulnerable and undermines broader public health efforts to control the virus.

​FDA OKs updated COVID shots but limits access
Agency cuts one of two shots for young kids.
By MATTHEW PERRONE The Associated Press

​WASHINGTON – U.S. regulators approved updated COVID- 19 shots Wednesday but limited their use for many Americans — and removed one of the two vaccines available for young children.

The new shots from Pfizer, Moderna and Novavax are approved for all seniors. But the Food and Drug Administration narrowed their use for younger adults and children to those with at least one high-risk health condition, such as asthma or obesity.

That presents new barriers to access for millions of Americans who would have to prove their risk — and millions more who may want to get vaccinated and suddenly no longer qualify.

Additionally, Pfizer’s vaccine will no longer be available for any child under 5, because the FDA said it was revoking the shot’s emergency authorization for that age group.

Parents will still be able to seek out shots from rival drugmaker Moderna, the other maker of mRNA vaccines, which has full FDA approval for children as young as 6 months. But the company’s Spikevax vaccine is only approved for children with at least one serious health problem.

The revamped vaccines target a newer version of the continuously evolving virus and are set to begin shipping immediately.

But it could be days or weeks before many Americans know if they’ll be able to get one, with access dependent on decisions by federal health advisers,private health insurers, pharmacies and state authorities.

The new restrictions a re a break from the previous U.S. policy, which recommended an annual COVID-19 shot for all Americans 6 months and up.

The approach reflects heightened skepticism about the ongoing risks of COVID-19 and the need for yearly booster shots from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and FDA Commissioner Marty Makary, who were both outspoken critics of wide-scale vaccinations.

Novavax’s shot is only open to people 12 or older, not younger children — and under the same risk-based restrictions as are now in place for the Moderna and Pfizer options. It’s the nation’s only traditional, protein-based COVID-19 vaccine.

Some medical groups, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, have objected to the new limits, saying they may block vaccine access for families who want to protect their children.

Last week, the group offered its own recommendations for kids, saying annual shots are strongly recommended for children ages 6 months to 2 years and advised for older children.

That differs from the latest guidance under Kennedy, which doesn’t recommend the shots for healthy children of any age but says kids may get the shots in consultation with physicians.

Insurers typically base their vaccine coverage decisions on the recommendations of a panel of advisers to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, but some say they will also look to medical professional groups, including the American Medical Association.

Earlier this year, Kennedy dissolved the CDC panel and replaced its members with a number of doctors and researchers who have repeatedly questioned the safety of commonly used vaccines and ingredients.

The panel is expected to meet in September, but no specific date has been set and no agenda released.