Calling it a „significant milestone in Canada’s fight against the pandemic,” Canada’s health regulator on Wednesday cleared the way for the use of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in individuals as young as 12 years old.

Health Canada made its decision after reviewing clinical trial data from Pfizer, which enrolled 2,000 adolescents between the ages of 12 and 15 in its U.S.-based trial, giving half that group a placebo and the other cohort the same vaccine that is used in adults.

In the trial, the 18 cases of COVID-19 that were noted were all recipients of the placebo.

„While younger people are less likely to experience serious cases of COVID-19, having access to a safe and effective vaccine will help to control the disease’s spread to their families and friends — some of whom may be at a higher risk of complications,” said Dr. Supriya Sharma, the chief medical adviser at Health Canada. „It will also support the return to a more normal life for our children, who have had such a hard time over the past year.”

Dr. Zain Chagla, associate professor of medicine at McMaster University in Hamilton, said the 12-15 age group is at „higher risk for transmission” than younger children.

„The more people that are safely vaccinated, it allows for more places to be opened up.”

The Pfizer vaccine is the first product to be authorized for use in this younger age category. Moderna and AstraZeneca are conducting trials into the effects of their vaccines with respect to children.

There have been reports in recent days that the United States will soon also authorize the use of the Pfizer vaccine in the 12-to-15 cohort.