The Pfizer-BioNTech Vaccine Protects Adolescents, New Data Show
Americans aged 16 and up are quickly becoming eligible for COVID-19 vaccinations across the U.S., but younger people are getting left behind, as regulators have yet to approve a shot for those under 16. That may not be the case for long, however.
Today, Pfizer-BioNTech announced that their coronavirus vaccine is 100% effective at preventing COVID-19 in kids ages 12 to 15, my colleague Alice Park writes. In a safety and efficacy study of 2,260 adolescents, no one who received the vaccine developed disease, compared to 18 participants in the placebo group who did. Vaccinated kids also had robust immune system responses to the shots; antibody levels were even higher in this age group than among 16- to 25-year olds who participated in prior research. Researchers found no significant side effects in the 12-15 group, and participants will be followed for two years to evaluate the shot's long-term protection and safety among younger recipients.
That Pfizer's vaccine works in this age range without any modifications is great news. "Although studies suggest that younger children do not seem to be as affected by COVID-19 as adults, they can still get severely ill, so vaccinating young children will provide them with the same protection as adults from getting sick," Alice says. Researchers are now testing the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in children as young as six months old.
These are just the top-line results; the full data have not been released yet. But Pfizer-BioNTech said in a press release that they will ask the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the European Medicines Agency to extend emergency use authorization for their shot to 12- to 15-year olds in the coming weeks. If that request is granted, the companies hope to start vaccinations in this age group before the start of the next school year.
Vaccinating children is vital to stopping the pandemic, and the sooner we can get children protected, the easier it will be to fully reopen schools for in-person learning. "Vaccinating younger children will make the school environment safer for not just the students, but teachers and staff as well," Alice says.
More than 195.5 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been shipped to various U.S. states as of this morning, of which 150.2 million doses have been administered thus far, according to TIME's vaccine tracker. About 28.8% of the overall U.S. population has received at least one dose, and about 16.4% of Americans have been completely vaccinated.
Israel will begin administering the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to people between 12 and 15 years old if and when the U.S. FDA authorizes such an extension based on the aforementioned data, Reuters reports. "Pfizer’s announcement is great news for the citizens of Israel," said Yuli Edelstein, Israel’s health minister, via social media today, adding that the country will need to procure more doses in anticipation of the expected FDA decision.
In other Pfizer-BioNTech news, the companies are working on a new vaccine formulation that will no longer require a saline diluent be added before a dose is administered, CNN reports, potentially making the process easier and faster. If the new formulation is authorized by the FDA, Pfizer expects to manufacture it in the second half of 2021.
TODAY'S CORONAVIRUS OUTLOOK
The Global Situation
More than 128.2 million people around the world had been diagnosed with COVID-19 as of 1 a.m. E.T. today, and more than 2.8 million people have died. On March 30, there were 568,122 new cases and 11,561 new deaths confirmed globally.
Here's how the world as a whole is currently trending:
Here's where daily cases have risen or fallen over the last 14 days, shown in confirmed cases per 100,000 residents:
And here is every country with over 2 million confirmed cases:
French President Emmanuel Macron announced the country's third national lockdown today, the New York Times reports, as his country grapples with a new wave of the coronavirus. During the lockdown, which begins Saturday, schools will close for at least three weeks, non-essential businesses will be closed, and travel will be curtailed. France reported about 37,000 cases over the last week, while only 12% of the population has been at least partially vaccinated. More than 5,000 people were in French intensive care units as of yesterday, the highest daily number since April 2020.
Russia has registered the world's first COVID-19 vaccine for animals, CNN reports. The vaccine, called "Carnivak-Cov," is designed to prevent the disease in carnivorous animals. It was tested in dogs, cats, foxes, minks and more; all animals who received the vaccine developed COVID-19 antibodies. Last year, Denmark announced plans to kill 17 million minks out of concern that the animals were spreading the virus.
The Situation in the U.S.
The U.S. had recorded more than 30.3 million coronavirus cases as of 1 a.m. E.T. today. Nearly 551,000 people have died. On March 30, there were 61,240 new cases and 875 new deaths confirmed in the U.S.
Here's how the country as a whole is currently trending:
Here's where daily cases have risen or fallen over the last 14 days, shown in confirmed cases per 100,000 residents:
A new report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) finds that the U.S. death rate rose by 16% during the coronavirus pandemic. COVID-19 was the third most common cause of death in the U.S. in 2020, with a death toll north of 375,000, behind heart disease and cancer. COVID-19 death rates were highest among American Indian/Alaska Native and Hispanic people.
Delta Air Lines will stop blocking passengers from booking middle seats beginning May 1, it announced today. Other airlines have also resumed selling all seats aboard their aircraft. With a growing number of Americans vaccinated—and the summer travel season approaching—airlines are hoping for a rebound after a historically bad year for the industry. Delta suffered a pre-tax loss of $15.6 billion in 2020, compared to the $6.2 billion in pre-tax income it reported in 2019.
All numbers unless otherwise specified are from the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering, and are accurate as of March 31, 1 a.m. E.T. To see larger, interactive versions of these maps and charts, click here.
WHAT ELSE YOU SHOULD KNOW
What it's Like Being an EMT During COVID-19
In an essay for TIME, volunteer EMT Jennifer Murphy writes of her year rushing New York City COVID-19 patients to hospitals. The thankless, risky work was worth it to help those most in need, she writes. "We carry many heavy things as EMTs: stair chairs, tech bags, patients. But one of the heaviest things we carry are stories." Read more here.
How the Pandemic Set Women Back 36 Years
The time it will take for the gender equality gap to close grew by 36 years during the past 12 months, according to the World Economic Forum's annual report on the topic. Here, my colleague Suyin Haynes reveals the devastating economic impact the pandemic has had on women worldwide. Read more here.
COVID-19 Has Permanently Changed Live Music
Livestreamed concerts have proliferated during the pandemic, but they're not just a temporary stand-in for in-person shows. Instead, they've morphed into international communities that enrich the cultural and even social lives of listeners, and fans expect them to persist long after quarantine lifts, my colleague Raisa Bruner reports. Read more here.
Thanks for reading. We hope you find the Coronavirus Brief newsletter to be a helpful tool to navigate this very complex situation, and welcome feedback at coronavirus.brief@time.com. If you have specific questions you'd like us to answer, please send them to covidquestions@time.com.
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Today's newsletter was written by Mandy Oaklander and edited by Alex Fitzpatrick.
