Children under 12 years old are currently not eligible for the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine. The USF Health Morsani College of Medicine has been selected as one of several sites conducting trials on Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine for this age group.

The first part of the trial, which focused on children 6-12 years old, is complete. USF Health researchers want to enroll 100 children ages 6 months to 5 years for a second trial by early December.

“A vaccine for children is necessary because they can transmit COVID-19, get sick enough to be hospitalized, experience long COVID—and sadly some children have died from COVID,” said Carina Rodriguez, MD, principal investigator for the Moderna trial at USF.

Carina Rodriguez, MD, principal investigator for the Moderna trial at USF Health.

Dr. Rodriguez, who is also a professor and chief of the Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases in USF Health’s Department of Pediatrics, said, “the goal is to look for an efficacious and safe COVID vaccine for children.” She continued, “It’s needed to accomplish the end of this pandemic.”

For more information about the trials or enrollment, please send an email to usfchildrenscovidvaccine@gmail.com or call/text at 813-853-1149.