Report: Majority of Parents not Keen to Vaccinate Kids Against COVID-19

A large majority of parents do not feel eager to vaccinate their young kids against the coronavirus, as per a new survey conducted by a KFF COVID-19 vaccine monitor.

The survey found that only 18% of parents with kids under five years of age say they will get their children vaccinated “right away.” Another 38% claimed that they prefer to “wait and see,” while 27% said they would “definitely not” let their kids get the vaccine. Additionally, 11% said they will only have their children get the shot “if required.”

This survey was conducted just before the news about Moderna seeking authorization from the Food and Drug Administration for their vaccine’s use in kids under five years old. Its findings suggest that once approved, a vaccine surge will likely take place, similar to when the jab was authorized in other age brackets. However, a large percentage of parents remain reluctant to get the vaccine for their children.

Currently, no vaccine has received authorization for use in children under 5. In January, Pfizer decided to delay its FDA request for its vaccine to be approved for young children. However, the agency is set to meet in June for the public review of vaccines for young children.

FDA Looking to Review COVID-19 Vaccine Authorization for Children by June

According to the FDA, it is planning to have its outside panel of experts meet on June 8, 21, and 22 so that they can review requests made by Pfizer and Moderna for child vaccines against COVID. The said dates are not yet final, and the agency also mentioned that it would provide more details about the meeting as each company finishes its application.

In connection to this, many uncertainty and questions have surfaced as to what’s taking the agency so long. On Friday, FDA Commissioner Robert Califf addressed this, mentioning that they can’t evaluate the vaccines until the companies have submitted all the data required.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, around 75% of kids have already gotten COVID-19.

Data published by the American Academy of Pediatrics revealed that COVID-19-related hospitalization among kids is still extremely low – around 0.1%-1.5% in the states reporting. With this, the mortality rate among kids is even lower since “0.00%-0.02% of all child COVID-19 cases resulted in death,” also in the states reporting.

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