Health & Fitness
CT Prepped, Ready For FDA To Green Light Vaccination for Children
Could the Feds authorize the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine for use on children aged 12-15 in time for the start of the school year?
CONNECTICUT — As the availability of a coronavirus vaccine for residents under the age of 16 came closer to reality, Gov. Ned Lamont speculated the state could establish clinics at schools to expedite adolescent vaccination.
On Monday, the New York Times reported that the Food and Drug Administration is expected to authorize the use of the Pfizer vaccine for use by adolescents aged 12 to 15 by early next week
Lamont said that such clinics, and an accompanying end-of-summer jab campaign, would be "very helpful in building confidence to get kids back into school in the fall."
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The governor was hopeful, but expressed some doubt such a rollout was realistic: "I'm not sure we're going to have them in time for this school year," Lamont said during a news conference Monday.
But if it were possible, and the state can get a "good chunk" of the 177,000 newly-eligible children between the ages of 12-15 vaccinated, state Chief Operating Officer Josh Geballe said it would move the state's overall vaccination percentage up "a couple of percentage points."
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"As soon as we get the green light from the FDA, we'll have our mass vaccination sites available ... to vaccinate our 12-to-15-year-olds," Geballe said.
An additional 1,312 cases of the coronavirus were confirmed over the weekend in the state, bringing that total to 340,545. With 73,821 tests reported, the daily positivity rate now sits at 1.78 percent, down about a quarter-point since Friday.
The number of residents hospitalized with COVID-19 has taken a nosedive to the lowest point in six months. There are 342 state residents hospitalized with the virus, down 41 beds over the weekend, according to the state Department of Public Health.
Coronavirus-associated deaths across the state rose by 15 over the weekend. The COVID-19 death toll in Connecticut now stands at 8,112.
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