Pfizer has submitted an application to Health Canada, seeking approval for their COVID-19 vaccine to be given to children aged 5-11.

Once Health Canada approves the request, providers across the country will be able to start vaccinating children as young as 5-years-old with a COVID-19 vaccine, although a new child-sized dose may need to be procured.

The doses for children are about one-third the regular amount given to those 12 and up.

Pfizer has delivered over 46 million doses of their vaccine to Canada already, and data from the federal government as well as provincial governments suggests that there are already more than enough doses in the country to vaccinate this lower age group.

The vaccine was developed by Pfizer in partnership with BioNTech of Germany, and is now marketed under the brand name Comirnaty. It was authorized for those 16 years of age and older in December 2020, and was approved for children aged 12-15 in May.