UK approves Moderna vaccine for 12-17 age group

Tuesday, 17 August 2021 16:49

By Reuters

Britain's health regulator has approved Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine for use in children aged 12 to 17 years.

The approval comes more than two months after Pfizer and German partner BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine got regulatory nod for use in children aged 12 to 15.

Moderna's vaccine was recommended for use in adolescents by European regulators in July and is awaiting US authorisation.

It is currently approved for people over the age of 18 in the UK.

Britain's Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) gave the go-ahead on August 4 for 16 and 17-year-olds to get their first dose of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine ahead of schools returning in September.

JCVI will make a decision on whether the vaccine will be deployed or not.

More from International News

Six killed in Swiss bus blaze after person reportedly sets themselves on fire

At least six people have died, and three others were injured in a bus fire on Tuesday in a small town in western Switzerland, in what police said may have been a deliberate act following reports that a person on board set fire to themselves.
US says it destroyed mine-laying vessels as Trump warns Iran over strait

The US military says it "eliminated" 16 Iranian mine-laying vessels near the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday in a statement by its Central Command, as President Donald Trump warned that any mines laid in the strait by Iran must be removed immediately.
Britain working with allies to support shipping through Strait of Hormuz

Britain is working with allies on a range of options to support commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz in the face of Iranian threats, Prime Minister Keir Starmer's spokesperson said on Tuesday as the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran roils oil prices.
Wildlife to replace humans on next series of UK banknotes

Images of animals will feature on the next series of banknotes from the Bank of England, as the central bank shifts away from historical figures such as William Shakespeare, Winston Churchill and Jane Austen over the coming years.