Coronavirus Watch: Pfizer vaccine appears safe, effective for kids under 5

Pfizer-BioNTech's three-dose COVID-19 vaccine appears to be safe and effective for children ages 6 months to 5 years, according to a company study released Monday.

The study of nearly 1,700 young children showed the vaccine to be as safe as a placebo and more than 80% protective during the omicron outbreak.

Some parents have become increasingly frustrated by the lack of a vaccine for young children.

The FDA has promised to rapidly review the safety and effectiveness data in young children and plans an advisory panel meeting as soon as June 8 to discuss authorizing shots in this age group.

Read more from reporter Karen Weintraub here.

It's Thursday, and this is Coronavirus Watch from the USA TODAY Network. Here's more news to know:

• The head of the WHO warned that the COVID-19 pandemic is “most certainly not over" during the opening of the organization's annual meeting.
• The city of Philadelphia has reinstated a mask mandate in public schools amid rising case counts in the area.
• COVID-19 cases are on the rise in the United States again, but why? Read more on the reasons for more infections here.

See our COVID-19 resource guide here. See total reported cases and deaths here. On vaccinations: About 77% of people in the U.S. have received at least one vaccine shot, and about 66% are fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.

– Cady Stanton, USA TODAY Nation NOW reporter, @cady_stanton