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Moderna testing COVID-19 vaccine on children
Many parents are awaiting the day the whole family can come to get vaccinated. FOX 5's Lindsay Watts spoke to some really impressive young people who are volunteering to make sure it's safe for your kids.
WASHINGTON (FOX 5 DC) - Drugmaker Moderna announced Tuesday that it’s started testing the COVID-19 vaccine on babies and young children. That trial is now underway with over 6,700 participants in the U.S. and Canada.
READ MORE: Moderna begins study of COVID-19 vaccine in children under 12
Meanwhile, a separate Moderna trial started several months ago to test the vaccine on kids who are 12 to 17.
Twins Drew and Jake Wesson, 15, are part of it and said they are getting their second shot on Wednesday.
"At first I was, like, a little nervous because of a fear of shots and needles," said Jake. "But overall I thought it would be pretty helpful to teens across the world to help teens and everyone get back to normal and do my part."
There are 3,000 young people in this Moderna study.
"I obviously did my research, talked to our pediatrician who was completely on board and very supportive," said Kristy Wesson, the boys’ mother. "And I’m just so proud of them."
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She said they were told a third of the participants get a placebo shot, at least to start.
"So we won’t know until they unblind the study, which we hear might be soon," said Kristy. "But they weren’t feeling so good after the first shot so we have a feeling they got the real thing."
The boys said they had typical symptoms, like a sore arm, following the first shot. They have to make sure to track all of that in a digital diary. They said they didn’t have anxiety about side effects from the vaccine, but had to overcome a fear of needles for the shots and required blood draws.
It’s something 12-year-old Kiera Chacon, of Kansas, can relate to. She’s also part of the study.
"I feel, like, sort of special that I get to do this," she said. "I feel important, I feel like I’m having a really big purpose."
She’s also gotten one shot so far, and said the reception to what she’s doing is mixed.
"My friends are always excited, but the friends’ parents are always suspicious of it," said Kiera.
"You know people get nervous about new things which is understandable," said Kiera’s mother, Lindsay Chacon.
There are other child vaccine studies underway as well. There’s hope among medical professionals that children 12 and up could get vaccinated before the start of the new school year.
"Brief discomfort I would say is worth it to help kids across the world get back to normal," said Jake.
For more information on how to enroll your child in the latest Moderna trial for children 6 months to 12 years old, click here.