Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for children under 12 gets green light in Malaysia

Malaysia’s Drug Control Authority (DCA) has granted conditional approval for the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for children aged 5 to 11 years old. CITF-C (COVID-19 Immunisation Task Force for Children) has been formed to handle the vaccination for children under 12 years old and it will be led by Deputy Health Minister Dr Haji Noor Azmi.

The authorised vaccine for children under 12 years of age is Pfizer’s Comirnaty 10mcg Concentrate for Dispersion for Injection. Meant for children aged 5 to 11 years old, it has a lower potency than current Cominaty vaccines administered to individuals aged 12 years old and above.

According to Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin, the vaccination for children under 12 will be administered in schools, similar to the current vaccination programme for teens. The Ministry of Health will provide more details at a later time. As of 5th January 2022, Malaysia has fully vaccinated 87.7% of teens aged between 12 to 17 years old.

Previously, Khairy shared during an online town hall session that Malaysia may have to wait until the end of the second quarter of 2022 to receive Pfizer vaccines for children. During today’s media briefing, the Minister said he’s in discussions with Pfizer on the delivery schedule.

The DCA has also conditionally approved a new Pfizer vaccine, Comirnaty (Tris/Sucrose) 30mcg solution for injection, that uses a new formulation that doesn’t require dilution before administration. The new vaccine formulation has a longer shelf life of 10 weeks (current formulation: 1 month) when stored at 2 ºC to 8 ºC after thawing. The Comirnaty (Tris/Sucrose) vaccine is meant for individuals aged 12 years old and above.

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