'Extremely Safe, Extremely Protective': Colorado Doctor Discusses Moderna COVID Vaccine For Children 6 And Younger

DENVER (CBS4)- Moderna said its COVID-19 vaccine works in children ages 6 and younger, including babies, toddlers and preschoolers. Moderna will ask regulators in the U.S. and Europe to authorize two small-dose shots for youngsters under 6 in the coming weeks.

The company also is seeking to have larger doses cleared for older children and teens in the U.S.

CBS4 Medical Editor Dr. Dave Hnida talked about the dosage those children would receive in the COVID-19 vaccine.

"What they found is that in this age group, 6 months to 5 years of age, is extremely safe, extremely protective. What they've done with this vaccine is basically taken a grown-up dose and they've taken it down to a quarter of a dose. What you do is give a quarter of the dose initially and then the second quarter dose 28 days later."

The nation's 18 million children under 5 are the only age group not yet eligible for vaccination.

"Side effects in this clinical study were shown to be very minimal. One in 6 kids got a low-grade fever, low-grade being defined as 100.4, and really not seeing any severe illness with it, and there were no cases of inflammation of the heart, myocarditis or pericarditis, which is the big concern when it came to immunizing adolescents against COVID."

Once Moderna submits its full data, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration will have to determine if that important marker means the youngsters are as protected against severe illness as adults.