The Food and Drug Administration has officially given full approval for the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine.
The FDA has signed off on the vaccine that has been in use through emergency approval only since December of 2020. This is the first and only COVID-19 vaccine to receive full approval from the FDA.
The authorization follows the same guidelines as what is already in place regarding who can receive the vaccine. However, there is no indication as to when the vaccine could be approved for children under the age of 12. The FDA has confirmed that there are trials going on among children in that age group.
“While this and other vaccines have met the FDA’s rigorous, scientific standards for emergency use authorization, as the first FDA-approved COVID-19 vaccine, the public can be very confident that this vaccine meets the high standards for safety, effectiveness, and manufacturing quality the FDA requires of an approved product,” acting FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock said in a statement.
Currently both the Moderna and Johnson and Johnson are still only in use through an emergency approval. The FDA expects that the full approval could make it easier for businesses, the military and schools to mandate vaccination. They also hope it provides reassurance for those who have vaccine hesitancy.
The FDA has reported that roughly 73% of adults in the U.S. have received at least one dose of either the Pfizer, Moderna or Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Currently Pfizer is the most commonly administered at at 56% overall according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine remains under the FDA’s review, but its approval is expected to follow in the near future.
Sarah Ulmer
