The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized on Wednesday the use of bivalent COVID-19 vaccines made by Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna as boosters for children down to five years of age. The shots include an mRNA component of the original strain of the virus, as well as a component found in the Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants.
The boosters will be available to children at least two months after the primary vaccination or a previous booster shot. The FDA added that the possible side effects are similar to those reported by individuals who received the monovalent versions. The monovalent vaccines will no longer be authorized.
