The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Robert Redfield, gave a formal sign-off Saturday evening for Pfizer-BioNTech’s coronavirus vaccine to be administered to people 16 and over, the agency said on Sunday.
His official endorsement followed the emergency authorization granted by the Food and Drug Administration on Friday. Frontline health care workers could begin getting the first dose of the two-shot vaccine in cities across the nation as soon as Monday morning.
An earlier version of this item incorrectly stated that the C.D.C.’s action on Saturday expanded the age range of authorized recipients beyond what the FD.A. had authorized, to include 16- and 17-year-olds. In fact, the F.D.A.’s authorization included them as well.
Dr. Redfield’s signoff marks one of the final nods from the U.S. government for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, the first to become available in Britain, Canada and now the United States.
