Starting Thursday, UAB To Offer Pfizer Vaccine To Adolescents
UAB Health System plans to offer the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine to adolescents beginning Thursday, pending a recommendation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The Food and Drug Administration expanded its emergency use authorization Monday to include children aged 12 to 15, following clinical trial results that found the Pfizer shot to be 100% effective in preventing disease among this age group.
“Overall this is a win for our community, to be able to provide one more group in Alabama and nationally with that protection,” UAB infectious disease specialist Dr. Ellen Eaton said during a press conference Tuesday.
Eaton said children infected with COVID-19 have better outcomes than adults, but serious illness and death are still possible. She said vaccination offers protection and helps everyone return to normal routines.
“Hospitalization and death are not the only bad outcomes for kids,” Eaton said. “Getting kids protected so that they can also achieve these other outcomes, not just wellness, but education, social, emotional, development. Those are things that have all been hindered significantly with the pandemic.”
UAB officials plan to expand eligibility on Thursday at all four of their community vaccination sites. No appointment is necessary but children need to be accompanied by a parent or guardian, who must give permission to receive the Pfizer shot.
Across Alabama, demand for COVID-19 vaccinations in Alabama has declined in recent weeks and the state’s vaccination rate is among the lowest in the country. About 25% of the population is fully vaccinated, placing the state second to last nationwide.
Editor’s note: UAB holds WBHM’s broadcasting license, but the news and business departments operate independently.
Soccer-loving ‘grannies’ go for the GOOOOAAAALLLL in their version of the World Cup
The players are women over 50. The oldest this year is 87. They took the field in South Africa for their "World Cup." One team was crowned the winner but all the players consider themselves champions.
Convalescing Pope Francis opens Holy Week with greeting in St. Peter’s Square
A convalescing Pope Francis greeted the crowd in St. Peter's Square on Palm Sunday, in yet another reassuring public sign of his recovery from a life-threatening battle with double pneumonia.
Lies and consequences lend new weight to ‘The Last of Us’ Season 2
The second season of HBO's hit zombie series takes what works the first season and turns it upside down, mining new drama from the uncertainty.
More than 30 people killed in Russian missile attack on Ukrainian city of Sumy
More than 30 people were killed in a Russian missile strike on the Ukrainian city of Sumy on Sunday, officials said.
A retrial of Sarah Palin’s case against ‘New York Times’ begins Monday
Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has the rare opportunity to retry her defamation case against The New York Times even though she lost it — twice in a 24-hour-period — in early 2022.
Will the SAVE Act make it harder for married women to vote? We ask legal experts
Legal experts say states could help married women who have changed their last names by accepting documents like a legal decree or a marriage certificate, but it might not fix the issue for all.
