Nine-year-old US boy volunteers for Moderna vaccine trial

A nine-year-old boy has been hailed a “Covid-19 vaccine pioneer” after volunteering to participate in a Moderna trial.

A US boy is a Covid-19 vaccine pioneer, according to a report.

Walker Clary, from Syracuse, New York, volunteered to participate in a pharmaceutical trial to “test the safety and effectiveness” of the Modernavaccine for those aged six months to 12 years, according to syracuse.com.

The two-shot vaccine is currently only offered to those 18 and older.

“I want to help out other kids,” Walker said, according to the news outlet. “And it’s exciting to be one of the first my age to get the shot.”

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Walker Clary at his first Covid-19 vaccine dose appointment. Picture: Supplied

Walker with a backpack from the Moderna’s KidCOVE study that he participated in. Picture: Supplied

Walker got his shot at a hospital on Wednesday, his father, Bob Clary, told syracuse.com, with nothing more than a sore arm and a little disturbed sleep for his troubles.

In just under a month, he’s slated to get his second shot.

With his mum, dad, 14-year-old brother and 12-year-old sister all vaccinated as well, Walker had no qualms about getting the jab.

“I’m not really worried about it at all,” he told syracuse.com. “I don’t want to get Covid.”

His older brother, Jack, did the trial last year, his dad told The Post. “And we showed both of them the opportunity based on some information our paediatrician had posted,” he said.

“[Walker], like most kids, struggled being at home and not school last year, so I think he also knows this is an opportunity to help make sure kids across the country stay in school and sports,” his dad said.

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Moderna plans to recruit for the study by age. Picture: Hazem Bader/AFP

Walker got his shot at Upstate University Hospital in Kirkville, as part of Moderna’s KidCOVE study. Families are offered compensation to participate.

Nearly 7000 people are participating in the trial, Moderna said.

Moderna plans to recruit for the study by age – first going to children aged six to 12, then aged two to six, and lastly those aged six months to two years, the pharmaceutical said.

This article originally appeared on the New York Post and is reproduced here with permission