J&J applies for vaccine trials for children in 12-17 age group

Johnson & Johnson (J&J) has applied for permission to conduct COVID-19 vaccine trials on adolescents in the age group of 12-17 years on Friday.

The US-based pharmaceutical company said in a statement that it is committed to facilitating global equitable access to its COVID-19 vaccine and to recognize the unmet needs of children.

“To ultimately achieve herd immunity, it is imperative that COVID-19 vaccine clinical trials continue to move forward in this population, and we remain deeply committed to the critical work needed to make our COVID-19 vaccine equitably accessible for all age groups,” the statement by J&J India spokesperson read.

The statement added that the company remains ‘deeply committed to the critical work’ needed to make J&J’s COVID-19 vaccine equitably accessible for all age groups.

Earlier in August, the government had given approval for Emergency Use Authorization to J&J’s single-dose COVID-19 vaccine in India, which will be manufactured by Hyderabad-based Biological E. Limited. Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya had said while announcing the approval that the approval would further boost the country’s collective fight against the novel coronavirus infection.

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“The US-based pharmaceutical company had applied for Emergency Use Authorization for its jab on Friday and was granted the approval the same day by the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI),” a senior health ministry official had said.

The five vaccines granted Emergency Use Authorization in India are Serum Institute’s Covishield, Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin, Russias Sputnik V, Moderna and J&J.

Mandaviya had said on Thursday that COVID-19 vaccines will be available for kids very soon, and said that the vaccine trials of Bharat Biotech and Zydus Cadila for kids is already underway.

(With inputs from Agencies)