Moderna's COVID vaccine cleared for 12- to 17-year-olds in EU
The approval comes after a study involving more than 3,700 children.
The European Medicines Agency recommended authorizing Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine for 12- to 17-year-olds on Friday. It's still awaiting approval from the US Food and Drug Administration.
A study involving more than 3,700 children showed that the shots produced a comparable antibody response to that seen in adults, the EU regulator said. The nod comes nearly two months after Moderna announced the vaccine's efficacy in teenagers.
Previously, Pfizer's vaccine was the only one approved for teens in Europe, the Associated Press noted.
More than 137 million doses of Moderna's vaccine have been administered in the US as of Friday, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and nearly 62 million people have been fully vaccinated with it. Across the 27 EU member states, more than 35 million doses have been administered, according to European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control data.