As COVID vaccines for children younger than five get approved, the White House has already ordered millions of the vaccines based on plans to put shots in kids' arms by June 21 — but many parents aren't eagerly awaiting the chance to get their young children vaccinated.
The pediatric vaccine regimens were approved for use by the FDA and now await the CDC's recommendations about how to use them before they can be administered to the public.
This age group is the least at-risk of experiencing severe symptoms of COVID. The American Academy of Pediatrics reported that children represent less than 20% of all recorded COVID cases. They also found only 0.1% to 1.5% of child COVID cases result in hospitalization and 0% to 0.02% of child COVID cases are fatal.
Many of the medical professionals who are not opposed to the pediatric vaccine's rollout said they don't think the shot is totally necessary, saying the risks of the shot are low, but so are the risks of the illness for the youngest children.
Up until this week, children aged six months to five years were the only age group ineligible for the COVID vaccine. Moderna used two doses 25% of the size of their adult dose in their trials for children younger than 5, which they determined is about 40% to 50% effective against infection. Pfizer has said that three shots 10% of the size of the adult dose is about 80% effective against symptomatic infection. The 80% effectivity estimate comes from a pool of only 10 children who got the virus during Pfizer's studies.
Meanwhile, the CDC says the COVID vaccine is 95% effective for adults — even though fully vaccinated individuals in the White House are still required to follow a strict testing regiment and COVID Czar Anthony Fauci contracted the virus despite being fully vaccinated and double-boosted.
The White House's plan is to get the youngest age group vaccinated as soon as possible (via AP):
The Biden administration has said the shots will roll out rapidly, and most tots are expected to be vaccinated in pediatricians’ offices or health clinics. It’s not clear how much demand there will be to vaccinate the youngest kids, however.
While she still worked for the White House, Jen Psaki exemplified the Biden administration's attitude on vaccines for kids when she explained why her young son hadn't been allowed to have playdates at home since COVID hit — as Townhall reported.
But outside of the Biden bubble, according to a poll done by the Kaiser Family Foundation, most parents are not planning to vaccinate their young children right away — and many do not plan to get them vaccinated at all (via KFF):
Fielded prior to the Moderna announcement, the latest KFF COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor survey finds that one in five parents of children under 5 (18%) are eager to vaccinate their child and say they will do so right away once a COVID-19 vaccine is authorized for their age group. Almost four in ten parents of children under 5 say they want to “wait and see” before getting their young child vaccinated (38%). Another four in ten parents are more reluctant to get their young child vaccinated with 11% saying they will only do so if they are required and 27% saying they will “definitely not” get their child under 5 vaccinated for COVID-19.
In other words, the vast majority of American parents have no interest in getting their young children vaccinated right away.