On the same day the Food and Drug Administration authorized Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for kids 5-11 years old, U.S. intelligence agencies announced they won’t be able to definitively pin down the virus’ origins. Also Friday, six New York City firefighters were relieved of duty and faced suspension after they drove a fire truck to a state Senator’s office and threatened his staff over the city’s vaccine mandate.
The FDA’s decision to allow kids 5-11 years old to get the COVID-19 vaccine comes just days after an advisory panel made the same call, nearly unanimously.
“As a mother and a physician, I know that parents, caregivers, school staff, and children have been waiting for today’s authorization,” acting FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock said in a Friday news release. “Vaccinating younger children against COVID-19 will bring us closer to returning to a sense of normalcy.”
Next week, advisers to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will make more detailed recommendations on which youngsters should get vaccinated. A final decision from CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky is expected shortly afterwards.
Meanwhile, in New York City, Friday’s incident was the latest in a series of protests to the city’s latest vaccine mandate, which targets municipal workers. Police officers, firefighters, garbage collectors and most other city workers have to prove they’ve gotten at least one dose of the vaccine by 5:00 p.m. Friday.
Workers who don’t comply will be put on unpaid leave starting Monday. The city is bracing for the possibility of closed firehouses, fewer police, fewer ambulances and mounting trash. As of Thursday, nearly one-fifth of city employees covered by the mandate had yet to receive at least one vaccine dose.
Friday also saw the culmination of a 90-day “redoubling of efforts” to investigate the origins of COVID-19. It came in the form of a report from the Director of National Intelligence.
“The [Intelligence Community] remains divided on the most likely origin of COVID-19,” the report said. “All agencies assess that two hypotheses are plausible: natural exposure to an infected animal and a laboratory-associated incident.”
While not pinning down one specific cause, the report did rule out some theories.
“We judge the virus was not developed as a biological weapon,” the report said. “Most agencies also assess with low confidence that [COVID-19] probably was not genetically engineered.”
