It's safe for children to get a COVID-19 shot

The approval of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for children 5 to 11 years of age is a crucial step toward protecting families from the virus and slowing its spread.

The vaccine breakthrough goes a long way toward ensuring that schools remain open, and that kids aren’t pushed to less-efficient remote-learning programs. It also allows parents to reenter the workforce.

Now we must encourage and persuade parents to participate in this scientific miracle.

Despite data that shows the safety of administering the vaccine to children, nearly three-quarters of parents nationally remain hesitant — and that’s a barrier society must overcome if we are going to slow the spread of COVID-19, and eventually eliminate it.

A Kaiser Family Foundation survey released recently showed that only 27% of parents of children between 5 and 11 planned to get their kids vaccinated immediately. Thirty percent of those asked said they would definitely not have their children vaccinated.

Parents said their concerns included long-term side effects, shorter-term vaccine reactions, and the rare instances of myocarditis in teenagers.

Parents have told doctors and other medical professionals at Northwell Health, including here at Cohen Children’s Medical Center, that it’s not that they are against vaccinating their children. It is just that they don’t see the urgency, since kids generally do not suffer from critical cases of COVID-19.

The parental thoughts and concerns have been persistent and predictable, based on what we have seen nationally from parents of eligible children between 12 and 17 years of age, where just under 60% of kids have received a dose. Only about half are fully vaccinated.

Even in New York, where the vaccine has generally been accepted, 59% of eligible children are fully vaccinated. With the next group of younger children about to become eligible, there’s reason to believe a hesitancy will remain. It’s our job to methodically and calmly explain why the right decision is to get your child vaccinated, whether they are 5 years old or well into their teenage years.

The reality for children is that the risks tied to contracting COVID-19 outweigh the risks associated with getting vaccinated. While at a lower rate than adults, children have become severely ill from COVID-19, and more than 600 have died nationwide.

We know the impact on children. We’ve cared for them. We’ve treated them, placed them in our intensive care unit, and tragically have placed them on a ventilator or other life-supporting measures.

The risks are also greater for children with underlying conditions, which include obesity, asthma, certain heart conditions, and diabetes. Hispanic and non-Hispanic Black children are also impacted at a greater rate.

Kids who have been vaccinated have avoided the more debilitating cases of COVID-19 and have had fewer systemic side effects than adults. Yes, there have been a few cases of myocarditis, but they’ve been mild and easily treatable with anti-inflammatory drugs, and occur at a rate that is dwarfed by the rate of hospitalizations for COVID-19 in children.

Finally, vaccinating your child is going to make everyone in the household safer, especially since about 25% of new COVID-19 cases nationwide are children. The kids are at school, social events and otherwise seeing friends. They’re back to living life, and with that comes the inherent risk of bringing COVID-19 home.

The approval is a gift. It is a chance to take greater control of this pandemic. Let’s take advantage of it.

This guest essay reflects the views of Dr. Charles Schleien, chair of pediatrics at the Barbara & Donald Zucker School of Medicine of Hofstra/Northwell and senior vice president and chair of Pediatric Services at Northwell Health.