VACCINES THIS WEEK.
THE FDA AND CDC HAVE APPROVED
ADDITIONAL BOOSTER SHOTS AND
VACCINES FOR CHILDREN ARE
EXPECTED TO BE APPROVED BY EARLY
NOVEMBER.
IN ANTICIPATION OF THAT, THE
BIDEN ADMINISTRATION RELEASED A
PLAN TO GET SHOTS IN THE
ARTICLES OF YOUNGER CHILDREN.
THE ADMINISTRATION REPORTS IT
HAS ENOUGH VACCINE FOR THE 28
MILLION CHILDREN IN THE FIVE TO
11-YEAR-OLD GROUP.
THE ROLL-OUT PLAN INCLUDES
MAKING THE VACCINE AVAILABLE
THROUGH DOCTORS AWS' OFFICES AND
SCHOOLS AND CLICKS.
WE ARE JOINED BY DR. WILLIAM
HARTD MAN WHO LEADS CLINICAL
TRIALS AT UW-MADISON.
THANKS VERY MUCH FOR BEING HERE.
>> THANK YOU.
>> SO I WANT TO TALK ABOUT
BOOSTERS IN A SECOND, BUT HOW
KEY IS IT IN YOUR MIND TO GET
THIS YOUNGER AGE GROUP
VACCINATED?
>> I THINK IT'S VERY IMPORTANT,
ESPECIALLY AS WE HAVE BEEN SO
INFECTED WITH THE DELTA VARIANT
AND THE DELTA VARIANT REALLY WAS
PREYING ON PEOPLE WHO ARE
UNVACCINATED.
THIS AGE GROUP OBVIOUSLY DID NOT
HAVE THE VACCINE AVAILABLE TO
THEM, SO WE SAW THE NUMBERS
BEGINNING TO REALLY INCREASE IN
TERMS OF INFECTIONS IN THIS AGE
GROUP.
AT ONE POINT THEY MADE CLOSE TO
30% OF ALL NEW INFECTIONS.
AND SO EVEN THOUGH THEY DON'T
TEND TO GET NEARLY AS ILL OR DIE
AS OFTEN FROM COVID-19, THEY ARE
STILL ABLE TO SPREAD THIS TO
OTHER PEOPLE, ESPECIALLY
VULNERABLE PEOPLE.
AND SO GETTING THIS AGE GROUP
VACCINATED IS REALLY A KEY PART
OF GETTING THE PANDEMIC UNDER
CONTROL.
>> GIVEN THE RESISTANCE, THOUGH,
ON THE PART OF A CERTAIN SEGMENT
OF THE POPULATION ABOUT
VACCINES, WHAT CAN YOU TELL US
ABOUT THE SAFETY OF COVID
VACCINES FOR CHILDREN?
ú>> SO A LOT OF WORK HAS GONE
INTO FINDING THE OPTIMAL DOSE OF
THESE VACCINES FOR THE CHILDREN
SO THAT WE CAN REALLY HAVE THE
SAFEST VACCINES AVAILABLE.
AND SO THE PFIZER VACCINE WILL
BE A THIRD OF THE ADULT DOSE.
THE MODERNA WILL BE 50% OF THE
ADULT DOSE.
SO THIS LESSENED DOSE WILL
HOPEFULLY LEAD TO OVERALL
INCREASED SAFETY, LESS SIDE
EFFECTS SEEN.
THUS FAR IN THE CLINICAL TRIAL
DATA PRESENTED BY PFIZER, THE
NUMBER OF SIDE EFFECTS HAS BEEN
LESS AND THEY HAVEN'T SEEN ANY
OF THE SERIOUS SIDE EFFECTS THAT
THEY SAW IN VERY FEW KIDS IN THE
TEENAGER GROUP.
>> SO YOU'VE BEEN DOING
PEDIATRIC TRIALS ON THE MODERNA
VACCINE.
WHERE DOES THIS POSSIBLY AND
PROBABLY RELEASE OF THE PFIZER
VACCINE FOR CHILDREN LEAVE YOUR
WORK?
>> SO WITH THE MODERNA VACCINE
WE'LL KEEP FORGING AHEAD.
WE WANT TO HAVE AS MANY VACCINES
AVAILABLE REALLY SO THAT THE
DATA CAN BE USED WORLDWIDE, SO
WE CAN HAVE THESE VACCINES
AVAILABLE TO KIDS ALL THROUGHOUT
THE WORLD.
MODERNA IS GOING TO BE A BIG
PART OF THAT.
THE AGE GROUP, THE FIVE TO
11-YEAR-OLDS, THE ENROLLMENT
PERIOD IS JUST ABOUT FINISHED
FOR THAT, SO THAT DATA WILL BE
INTERPRETED OVER THIS NEXT MONTH
OR MONTH AND A HALF, FOLLOWED UP
ON, MAKE SURE THAT EVERYTHING IS
SAFE AND THAT THE EFFECTIVENESS
IS DETERMINED AND THEN HOPEFULLY
BY THE 1ST OF THE YEAR A SECOND
VACCINE, THE MODERNA ONE, COULD
BE AVAILABLE TO THIS AGE GROUP
AS WELL.
>> AS TO ADDITIONAL BOOSTER
VACCINES NOW APPROVED, WHO ARE
THESE IMPORTANT FOR?
>> BOOSTERS RIGHT NOW ARE
APPROVED FOR ESSENTIALLY THREE
GROUPS.
SO THE OVER 65, THE MOST
VULNERABLE PEOPLE TO COVID-19.
THE PEOPLE 18 TO 65 WHO HAVE A
CO-MORBID CONDITION.
AND THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE A JOB
THAT GIVES THEM A HIGH EXPOSURE
TO COVID-19.
THESE ARE THE PEOPLE THAT
THEY'RE FOCUSING ON GETTING
THESE BOOSTERS TO.
THE VACCINE INITIAL SERIES,
WHETHER YOU GOT JOHNSON &
JOHNSON, PFIZER OR MODERNA,
REALLY PROVIDES EXCELLENT SAFETY
AND EFFECTIVENESS AGAINST
HOSPITALIZATION, SEVERE DISEASE
AND DEATH FROM COVID-19.
BUT GETTING THE BOOSTERS INTO
THESE MORE VULNERABLE
POPULATIONS WILL REALLY IMPROVE
THE OVERALL EFFECTIVENESS OF THE
VACCINES AND CUT DOWN ON THE
NUMBER OF INFECTIONS THAT WE
SEE.
>> NOW, WE KNOW THAT THE FDA AND
CDC IS NOW ALLOWING MIXING AND
MATCHING OF THESE VACCINES AND
EARLY REPORTS SUGGEST THAT THE
JOHNSON & JOHNSON VACCINES WHICH
270,000 PEOPLE IN WISCONSIN
RECEIVED IS FAR LESS PROTECTIVE
EVEN WITH ITS BOOSTER.
SO DO YOU THINK BOOSTING WITH
AN mRNA DOSE SHOULD BE
RECOMMENDED FOR PEOPLE IN THAT
CATEGORY?
>> FOLLOWING THE DATA IT DOES
APPEAR IT WOULD BE VERY
APPROPRIATE TO FOLLOW UP THE
JOHNSON & JOHNSON VACCINE WITH
ONE OF THE mRNA VACCINE.
THE DATA SHOWS THAT WHEN JOHNSON
& JOHNSON IS FOLLOWED UP WITH
PFIZER, ANTIBODY LEVELS
INCREASED BY 42 TIMES.
WITH MODERNA IT INCREASED BY 75
TIMES.
SO IT GREATLY ENHANCES THE
OVERALL EFFECTIVENESS AND
PROTECTION THAT THESE VACCINES
CAN CONVEY.
>> OKAY.
DR. HARTMAN, THANKS VERY MUCH.
WE KNOW THESE BOOSTERS ARE JUST
ROLLING OUT AS WE SPEAK.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR WORK AND