FDA advisors meet on Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine in children ages 5 to 11

Special: Battle Against Novel Coronavirus

Advisors to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) met on Tuesday to discuss whether the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine should be authorized for children ages 5 to 11.

The FDA's Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee will vote on a recommendation of the vaccine later Tuesday.

If authorized, it would be the first COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5 to 11.

Once the FDA makes its authorization, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's vaccine advisory group is set to meet on Nov. 2 to 3 on recommendations for the use of the vaccine for younger kids.

Pfizer and its partner BioNTech said their COVID-19 vaccine is safe and 90.7 percent effective against symptomatic COVID-19 in children ages 5 to 11, according to a document posted online ahead of the FDA advisors' meeting.

Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, said some 28 million children ages 5 to 11 in the United States may be able to receive their COVID-19 vaccine in the first two weeks of November.