Now that authorization for COVID-19 vaccines for kids under the age of 5 has been issued, many parents are eagerly seeking appointments for them.
National polling from the Kaiser Family Foundation found in early May that 1 in 5 parents want to get their child under 5 vaccinated as soon as possible, while nearly 2 in 5 percent said they will wait. Another quarter said they definitely would not.
Here’s what some of our readers have to say about vaccines for young kids:
Why parents are choosing to vaccinate their children
“I will get him vaccinated to reduce his risk of serious illness, hospitalization, and death, as well as to hopefully reduce at least somewhat his chance of getting COVID-19 at all and his risk of long COVID if he does get it,” one parent said.
“We have been waiting over a year for this, the vaccine doesn’t change physiology, it just stimulates the immune system. The complete short and long-term consequences of having COVID-19 aren’t yet known, especially in children who have decades of life before them. We know this won’t fully protect our child from becoming sick but it will provide protection and if she does get COVID-19 the illness should be less severe,” another said.
How vaccines will impact daily life
“We may loosen up some precautions (may not continue to mask at school, for example, at least while case rates (and rates of flu, etc) are low,” one parent said.
“It likely won’t as we continue to be concerned about catching COVID-19 even though everyone in the house will be fully vaccinated. The long-term implications for COVID-19 are so unknown that it continues to make us cautious,” said another.
Why some parents are holding off
“My shots and boosters didn’t stop me from contracting or spreading [COVID-19]. If the argument for getting the vaccine is in regards to reducing severity of illness then there is no point for injecting these rushed to market drugs into my child,” said one parent who is choosing not to vaccinate their child under 5 at this time.
“If we had any children of that age, we would not use the COVID shot for them. A vaccine is something that is typically one and done. This [vaccination] shot is not that,” another parent said.
Questions
“Just why pediatricians here don’t seem to be ready to administer it ASAP; why there isn’t more than one large [vaccine] clinic planned and ready to go already,” one parent asked.
Do you have something you want to tell us or questions you want answered about COVID-19 vaccines for the youngest kids? Contact us at [email protected].
