ASTHO Chief Medical Officer Marcus Plescia, MD, MPH, Comments on COVID-19 Vaccine Approval for Children Ages Six Months to Five Years

June 18, 2022

ARLINGTON, VA—Today, Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) Chief Medical Officer Marcus Plescia, MD, MPH, made the following statement after FDA and ACIP approval of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccine for children ages six months through five years:

"State and territorial health officials welcome the addition of the COVID-19 vaccine for our youngest population, those aged six months through five years. This vaccine will help families keep their children safe as we head into the fall and winter seasons, and beyond. The Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines have been rigorously tested, retested, and are proven to be safe and effective for this population.

Parents now have the option to vaccinate their small children against this highly transmissible disease. We hope that this tool in the fight against COVID-19 will put parents and their caregivers at ease knowing that an additional layer of protection is offered."

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ASTHO is the national nonprofit organization representing the public health agencies of the United States, the U.S. territories and freely associated states, and Washington, D.C., as well as the more than 100,000 public health professionals these agencies employ. ASTHO members, the chief health officials of these jurisdictions, are dedicated to formulating and influencing sound public health policy and to ensuring excellence in public health practice.