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 But across the country in Michigan, Rachael LaPlante said she was
planning to hold off on getting the shots for her 7-year-old son,
despite being fully vaccinated against COVID-19 herself.
After months of anticipation, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention on Tuesday gave the green light https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-cdc-advisers-vote-covid-19-vaccine-young-children-2021-11-02
for health professionals to start administering the Pfizer Inc/BioNTech
SE shot to children ages 5 to 11.
That left parents of roughly 28 million U.S. school-age kids facing
the decision on Wednesday https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-start-giving-covid-19-vaccines-young-children-2021-11-03
about how to proceed.
The authorization comes as children across the country are adjusting
to in-person school attendance after more than a year of remote
learning in some areas. Children currently represent more than 25%
of U.S. infections and can transmit the virus to those around them.
But some adults who have been vaccinated against COVID-19 themselves
are feeling more hesitant when it comes to doing the same for their
young children.
"We have a group of parents who are so excited that they want us to
give them a call as soon as we have the vaccine so they can make
appointments ... and we have parents that are still questioning,"
said Dr. Kimberly Montez, an assistant professor of pediatrics at
Wake Forest School of Medicine in North Carolina.
Some parents have expressed concern about the lack of long-term data
on the vaccine's effects on children under 12. Others question its
necessity given that severe COVID-19 is much less common for that
age group, although many children have been hospitalized during the
recent Delta variant wave.
LaPlante, 41, worries about rare cases of heart inflammation linked
to the vaccine, particularly in young men, even though health
experts say the heart risks from contracting COVID-19 are far
greater.
"I struggle with it," she said. "What if it turns out that there are
long-term problems for boys?"
[to top of second column] |
 LaPlante and her husband, who
works from their home in Rochester, Michigan,
continue to observe social distancing and
masking protocols to protect against infection.
She said their son, who is home-schooled, plays
outside with friends and sees his cousins for
baking parties and other organized events over
video chat services. For Kneitel,
a 41-year-old physician, getting her son vaccinated - and her
daughter as soon as she turns 5 next year - means the family can
return to a more normal social life. She said she is eager for them
to resume sports and ballet, as well as going to concerts and
theater performances.
GROWING LESS HESITANT
A Kaiser Family Foundation poll in August found that about a quarter
of parents want their young children vaccinated "right away," with
another quarter in the "definitely not" camp.
In interviews, pediatricians and public health experts said parents
appear to be growing less hesitant as time goes on.
In Ellerslie, Georgia, Chrissie Jennette, 41, said she will get her
three young sons vaccinated as soon as possible. "I
know there was concern that it was a quick rollout, but there was
never a moment I was concerned," Jennette said.
But in the small Alabama city of Enterprise, Claire Deaton, 33, does
not plan to make appointments for her children.
She has received a first COVID-19 shot, while her husband, a retired
military pilot who now does training and is required to get
vaccinated for work, so far has not. Both have had COVID-19 twice,
and their children were never sick, she said.
Though her kids have received all of the regular childhood
immunizations, Deaton said she does not see the COVID-19 vaccine as
necessary for them so far.
 "If things started changing and it was affecting more children, or
if we had a huge outbreak in local schools, I would be more open to
getting it," she said.
(Reporting by Sharon Bernstein; Editing by Colleen Jenkins and Bill
Berkrot)
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