The vaccine is approved for people who are 5 years of age and older. Its safety and effectiveness in people younger than 5 years of age have not yet been established.
Effectiveness
Clinical trials showed that beginning 1 week after the second dose, the Pfizer-BioNTech Comirnaty®COVID vaccine was about:
- 95% effective in protecting trial participants from COVID-19 for those 16 years and older
- 100% effective for those 12 to 15 years old
- 90.7% effective for those 5 to 11 years old
Dosage
This vaccine requires 2 doses (30 mcg each for ages 12 and older or 10 mcg each for ages 5 to 11) for maximum protection.
The dosing schedule approved by Health Canada is to give the 2 doses 21 days apart, based on evidence from clinical trials.
A booster dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech Comirnaty®COVID-19 vaccine may be administered in individuals 18 years of age and older at least six months after completing their primary vaccine series.
Your province or territory decides when people receive their doses of the vaccine.
These decisions are based on public health recommendations and the latest evidence.
The currently available vaccine product with a purple cap is used to prepare the dose for individuals 12 years of age and older. This is three-times higher than the dose for children 5 to 11 years of age. The vaccine vials for dosing in ages 5 to 11 years have orange caps and an orange border on the label. This helps to distinguish these vials from those with the higher dose. This also helps to ensure the correct dose is administered to younger children.
Possible side effects
After getting vaccinated, it’s common to have temporary side effects. These can last a few hours to a few days after vaccination.
This is the body’s natural response, as it’s working hard to build protection against the disease.
