Following recent approval from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), millions of pediatric doses of the COVID vaccine produced by Pfizer-BioNTech have been shipped out across the country.
Kids aged 5 to 11 in Connecticut were among the first to receive Pfizer's mRNA vaccine, after it was granted emergency use authorization by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Pfizer showed in its clinical trials among children that the pediatric dose, which is about one-third of the doses for adults, was 91% effective in combating symptomatic illness in five to eleven-year olds.
The pediatric COVID shot showed minimal initial side effects, such as sore arm, headaches, or fever, CBN News reported. No cases of myocarditis, or a rare heart inflammation, were reported. Dr. Ryan Ribeira of Stanford Hospital's Emergency Department said that because it was a "smaller dose" of the COVID vaccine, there were "a lot less common" side effects such as fever in the 5 to 11 age group.
Despite this, only 27% of parents are actually willing to get their children get the COVID shot.
"I wouldn't be getting any of my kids an 'emergency use authorization' vaccination. I definitely would want to see long-term studies," one parent declared. CBN News Medical Reporter Lori Johnson reported that there were several reasons as to why parents were hesitant to get their children vaccinated against COVID, but one stood out.
"The number one reason is that they're afraid of the unknown long-term side effects and when asked to drill down on what exactly, the side effects," Johnson explained. "They're worried that later on down the road their children might have fertility problems, trouble conceiving children when they are adults even though there's absolutely no evidence presented by the drug company Pfizer, the FDA and the CDC that that is a risk."
On Wednesday, President Joe Biden spoke from the White House, urging parents to get their children vaccinated and those who are eligible to get booster shots of the COVID vaccine, CNBC reported. The Democratic leader and health authorities under his administration believe that pediatric vaccinations and booster shots are key in helping the country move forward into COVID's "endemic" phase.
"Vaccines for children ages 5 to 11 and boosters that provide additional protection for seniors and others are two major steps forward that are going to accelerate our path out of this pandemic," President Biden said. "Our vaccination program is not only helping to save lives and beat the pandemic, it's helping our economic recovery and helping us grow."
Dr. Jennifer Shu of Children's Medical Group office in Decatur, Georgia, which started inoculating kids on Wednesday, told Breitbart that the timing of pediatric COVID vaccines was "very fortunate" because the winter holidays are coming. Dr. Shu said, "This age group will be able to spend holidays with friends and family more safely than they have been able to since the start of the pandemic."
But not all parents are convinced. Colorado mother Hannah Hause, who is vaccinated and has kids aged 2 to 8, expressed concern, saying, "It's not studied long-term. It just makes me nervous. As long as I can wait, I will wait."
