'I will be first in line': Chicago mom excited about the Moderna COVID vaccine that could be approved for children
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Moderna is out with encouraging news for parents, saying its COVID-19 vaccine works well in children under six.
CBS 2's Sabrina Franza reports it has been a long time coming. This would be the first because there hasn't been a shot available to kids that young yet.
Moderna said the results from their trials show no new safety issues and some efficacy against COVID-19 infection. But it's less than 50%.
"I will be first in line to get them vaccinated."
Susan Lester is a working mom of two. CBS 2 first met her after Pfizer withdrew its application for kids under five. Her daughers Eliza and Audrey and four and two years old.
"Its just been, since before Christmas to early February, at least one kid was home every week if not both of them, for long periods of time," Lester said, adding that Moderna's kid-sized shot will keep her kids in daycare.
"My hope would be that it would allow them not to have to quarantine if there was an exposure," Lester said.
Moderna said its two dose shot series was 37.5% effective in kids two to six and 43.7% effective in kids six months to two years old.
"That's where it's really important to consider what the vaccine is intended to do. The purpose of vaccines especially for COVID has been to keep them out of the hospital and from getting severe illness."
Doctor Bill Muller from Lurie Children's Hospital said that's enough reason to get your kids the shot, which is one quarter of the adult dose.
"They can prevent them from spreading it to people who are at risk of severe illness," Muller said. "So grandparents are the ones we're worried about in that case."
CBS 2 asked about another COVID wave.
"There is absolutely no guarantee that there will not be another variant in the future that will sweep through and those who are susceptible could still have severe illness and that means children," Muller said.
More reason moms like Susan are happy to get their kids the shot, still pending approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA.)
"it would just help all of us learn to live with COVID in as normal a way as we can."
Once the FDA reviews the data, and if it's authorize, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will then decide if they will also recommend the series.
Experts said it could take as little as four to six weeks for the application to go through and for the shots to start getting into kids' arms.
