FDA approves Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine for minors aged 6 to 17


The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the use of the Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine for use on six to 17 years old.

A health worker prepares a syringe with the Sinovac Covid-19 coronavirus vaccine during a vaccination drive for schoolchildren aged 12-18 in Surabaya on July 11, 2021, as Indonesia faces its most serious outbreak driven by the highly infectious Delta variant. (Juni Kriswanto / AFP)

In a text message, Health Undersecretary and National Vaccination Operations Center (NVOC) Chairperson Myrna Cabotaje confirmed the approval.

"Yes approved na ng FDA yung Sinovac for 6 yrs and above," she said.

"Same formulation at dose sa adults. We are finalizing operational guidelines," she added.

Currently, what's approved by the country's own FDA is the use of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna Covid-19 vaccines for 12 to 17 years old as well as the the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to be used among children aged five to 11.

Cabotaje stated in a recent public briefing that the country’s pediatric Covid-19 vaccination is “doing well.” She said that around one million children aged five to 11 have already received their first dose while there were 237,000 who already got their second dose.