COVID-19 Vaccine Availability for Children in the US
More than 139 million American population is fully vaccinated, according to the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data. While the majority of adults have received the vaccination, some older teens are now receiving COVID-19 vaccination. Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is available to everyone age 16 and older.
To expand the further reach of the vaccine, Pfizer is requesting FDA emergency use authorization for vaccination of children who are 12 to 15 years old. The drug company and its partner, BioNTech is a clinical trial that mentioned that the vaccine was safe and effective for the age group.
In this blog, we’ll discuss when the children and younger teens would receive the vaccine. There is ongoing vaccine research on how to protect kids from getting COVID-19 while they are vaccinated.
Vaccinating younger teens
Younger adolescents are likely to gain access to the vaccine this summer. The approval of the Moderna vaccine for children under 18 is pending. The company is also conducting a study to test the vaccine in 12 to 17 years old.
Varied attitudes among parents
You can find mainly three categories of parents. There are few parents who desperately want their children to get vaccinated. Parents are scared of COVID and know that their children may get sick. They want their children to return to school and do normal activities with peace of mind. These are the ones who are enthusiastic about their children getting vaccinated.
The next category of parents is the ones who want a little more experience in vaccines and would like to wait and see and don’t want to be the first in line.
The third category signifies those parents who are vaccine-hesitant and want to get some reliable resources. They want to make sure that they are aware of the experience if the vaccines are robust or not.
Importance of vaccination for children
It is true that unless a significant segment of the population doesn’t get immune, there is no chance that we can go towards herd immunity.
According to Dr. Dean A. Blumberg, chief of Pediatric Infectious Disease at the University of California, Davis, few children have also represented over 20 percent of a new infection. The reason is that the new infection will occur to those who are not immune right now and because the younger children are not eligible for the vaccination yet.
Are vaccine trials in younger kids happening now?
There is no clear timetable for immunizing younger kids. Before making the COVID-19 vaccines available for younger children and teens, there is a need for clinical trial completion. It is to ensure that they are effective and safe for these age groups.
Even though children are not little adults, we cannot assume a vaccine to have the same effect on a child as it does on elders.
Effects of COVID-19 on kids
With the start of the pandemic, more than 3.6 million U.S. children tested positive for COVID-19. Most children with the contraction showed mild illness for COVID-19. Even though with the rare death rate, 297 children died of the disease as of mid-April.
A rare yet potentially serious condition that seems to link with COVID-19 is a multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children or MIS-C. Children with MIS-C get their organs like eyes, brain, kidneys, lungs, and heart inflamed.
Apart from that, if we speak of good news, CDC said that the return of students to in-person school didn’t result in the increase in COVID-19 cases among kids. The use of masks and physical distancing is helping to keep the low spread of transmission.
Protecting un-vaccinated kids from coronavirus
Even if the COVID-19 vaccines are becoming widely available, you must protect your kids against coronavirus.
You can follow these guidelines by CDC:
- Kids whose age is two and above must wear masks properly in public.
- Each day you must disinfect and clean surfaces with frequent touches like sinks, toilets, or doorknobs.
- Try to put off travel plans.
- You must limit playdates with friends or family members who take steps to prevent the spread of coronavirus.
The coronavirus vaccine is reaching young people each day. Parents of older teens are trying to get them immunized. But as more vaccine research gets underway, parents of younger children need to be vigilant and patient to prevent the transmission of the virus in unvaccinated kids.
For more updates on the COVID-19 vaccines, stay tuned to the WiseRx Discount Card blog!