Three things for October 19
1. Pzifer gets FDA approval for child vaccine trials
This week, Pfizer announced it received FDA approval to enroll children as young as 12 years old in its COVID-19 vaccine trial.
According to NPR, the expansion aims to understand whether the vaccine would be safe and effective for adolescents.
Children under 16 have not been included in any of the COVID-19 vaccine trials in the U.S.
“I think this is a really big deal,” said L.J. Tan, chief strategy officer of the Immunization Action Coalition. “Without clinical trials actually done in children, the only way to actually extend the use of the COVID-19 vaccine into children would be to rely on the adult data.”
“Children must be included in vaccine trials to best understand any potential unique immune responses and/or unique safety concerns,” wrote the American Academy of Pediatricians President Sara Goza.
Pzifer has also recently announced that they plan to submit their COVID-19 vaccine for FDA approval in late November.
“Assuming positive [efficacy, safety and manufacturing] data, Pfizer will apply for Emergency Authorization Use in the U.S. soon after the safety milestone is achieved in the third week of November,” wrote CEO and chairman of Pfizer, Albert Bourla.
2. Armenia and Azerbaijan truce breaks down within hours of agreement
On Sunday, Armenia and Azerbaijan accused each other of violating a ceasefire hours after it was agreed upon.
According to AP News, the truce was broken at midnight after a week-old Russian-brokered ceasefire failed to halt the fighting.
At least 750 people have been killed since the fighting began on Sept. 27.
The new truce was announced on Saturday after Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov talked to his Armenian and Azeri counterparts, calling on both sides to observe the truce.
Russia, France and the U.S. belong to the Minsk Group, which has attempted to help resolve the conflict under the umbrella of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
3. Judge rules Tennessee waiting period law unconstitutional
U.S. Senior District Judge Bernard Friedman ruled the waiting period restriction in the 2015 law requiring a mandatory 48-hour waiting period before getting an abortion was unconstitutional.
According to Forbes, Friedman said the waiting period was “gratuitously demeaning” to women, noting that the law served no legitimate purpose.
The law had a provision that if the 48-hour period were to be found unconstitutional, it would automatically change to a 24-hour waiting period. Friedman ruled that the state cannot enforce either.
“Defendants’ suggestion that women are overly emotional and must be required to cool off or calm down before having a medical procedure they have decided they want to have, and that they are constitutionally entitled to have, is highly insulting and paternalistic — and all the more so given that no such waiting periods apply to men,” Friedman said.
