Pfizer-BioNTech jab 100% effective on kids aged 12-15

ANKARA – US drugmaker Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech announced on Wednesday that their Covid-19 vaccine has shown “100 percent efficacy” among children aged between 12 and 15.

“We share the urgency to expand the authorization of our vaccine to use in younger populations and are encouraged by the clinical trial data from adolescents between the ages of 12 and 15,” Albert Bourla, chairman and chief executive officer of Pfizer, said in a statement.

Data from a US study with 2,260 volunteers showed there were no Covid-19 cases among adolescents who were vaccinated, as opposed to 18 infections among those given placebo shots.

Bourla said the firms are planning to send the results to the US Food and Drug Administration and other regulators around the world in the coming weeks, “with the hope of starting to vaccinate this age group before the start of the next school year.”

Ugur Sahin, CEO and cofounder of BioNTech, said the initial results show that adolescents are “particularly well protected by vaccination.”

“It is very important to enable them to get back to everyday school life and to meet friends and family while protecting them and their loved ones,” he said.