An image shared on Instagram claims a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory committee concluded the COVID-19 vaccine is not “sufficiently safe or effective for people under 65.”

 

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Verdict: False

There is no evidence any FDA advisory committee concluded the COVID-19 vaccine was unsafe or ineffective. Pfizer’s vaccine has been fully approved by the FDA for use in individuals 16 years or older. Both the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines have been authorized for emergency use by the FDA for individuals who are 18 years or older.

Fact Check:

The FDA is the federal agency in charge of ensuring the efficacy and safety of pharmaceutical drugs, food, vaccines and medical devices in the U.S. A post shared on Instagram claims one of the agency’s many advisory committees concluded the COVID-19 vaccine “isn’t sufficiently safe or effective for people under 65.” (RELATED: Did A Member Of The FDA Vaccine Advisory Panel Say, ‘We Are Killing More People Than We Are Saving With The Shots’?) 

This claim is baseless. On Aug. 23, the FDA fully approved Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for people aged 16 and over, according to a press release from the agency. The same press release notes the vaccine remains available for individuals aged 12 to 15 under an FDA emergency use authorization (EUA). The Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines have also both received EUAs from the FDA and are available for those 18 years or older, according to the FDA’s website.

Check Your Fact found no evidence that any FDA advisory committee, or any other credible medical authority, has concluded that the COVID-19 vaccines are dangerous or ineffective when used by individuals under the age of 65. Tens of millions of Americans under the age of 65 have already been fully vaccinated with one of the three available COVID-19 vaccines over the last 10 months. The World Health Organization, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Johns Hopkins University state on their respective websites that the COVID-19 vaccines are both safe and effective.

The FDA recently authorized Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine booster shots for certain vulnerable populations, including people over the age of 65, individuals aged 18 to 65 at high risk from the disease and people 18 to 64 whose occupation puts them at exceptional risk of contracting COVID-19.