Doctor Is In by Dr. Adil Manzoor OP/ED
Vaccine this, the vaccine that. Everything is about vaccines now. However, in the middle of all these vaccine talks, it seems health officials have forgotten our kids. But have they truly forgotten our kids?
Everyone is now aware that the vaccine distribution is well underway, moving from just high-risk individuals to the general population. According to Biden, there will be enough vaccine doses to vaccinate every adult in the country by the end of May. That is terrific news.
We aren’t just meeting the vaccine distribution goals set by this administration; we are surpassing them. And by a wide margin. That really is terrific news. However, there is still discontent in some aspects of the population, like the minorities and, of course, the minors.
Everyone has been affected by the coronavirus in one way or the other. With kids, the major issue has been the closure of schools. Not only is their education bearing the brunt of this pandemic, but their social interactions are suffering too. Some schools are reopening now, to be fair, but under strict regulations and guidelines. Education is no longer fun for many kids, and that’s not good news.
This brings us then to the question, ‘why aren’t kids getting vaccinated?’ Most adults in the US now are either vaccinated or have an idea of when they will be vaccinated; this is not the same with kids. For starters, Pfizer and BioNTech vaccines were only recently approved to be used for kids as young as 12. Kids below 11 may have to wait even longer before they can get the vaccines.
Many pediatricians have, understandably, been vocal in their criticisms of these pharmaceutical companies for not including kids in their pre-vaccine development studies. As a pediatrician myself, I understand these frustrations, but I don’t have too many complaints. Why? Because kids haven’t been the ones suffering the most from the virus, health-wise.
Take a look at this number – only about 270 of the over 549,000 covid-related deaths in the United States have been in people below 18. That’s about 0.05%. You have to agree with me that there isn’t much of a case to make for kids here, which is good news as it means only a few kids are dying from the virus. But when it comes to vaccination, the numbers don’t work in the favor of kids. Health officials, experts, and pharmaceutical companies themselves first have to focus their efforts on ensuring adults, who are at a far greater health risk, are vaccinated.
Notwithstanding, kids have to get the vaccine sometime if we want to beat the virus. Herd immunity is starting to appear frequently on the lips of health officials. Herd immunity simply entails vaccinating enough of the population to protect the unvaccinated population. However, herd immunity will not work without vaccinating kids below 18, as they make up over 22% of the US population.
According to Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, older teens will be offered the vaccine by fall or thereabouts. Younger kids will have to wait till 2022.
I know we are all eager to beat this virus, but we have to tread with caution. I, for one, don’t believe we should rush vaccinations in kids. Let’s give these pharmaceutical companies enough time to conduct all the necessary studies before approving vaccines for younger kids. I mean, a 0.05% percentage of total deaths is not an alarming enough number to rush vaccine distribution as with adults.
Don’t get me wrong. I am not calling the death percentage good; far from it. It’s never nice to see anyone die, let alone kids, but the vaccines currently in use only has an emergency authorization. This isn’t saying they aren’t safe, but there shouldn’t be the same rush with kids as there was for adults. I can cope with some extra months of covid cases here and there in kids, but definitely not decades of trying to fix the effects of a botched vaccine.
Again, I don’t doubt the efficacy of the vaccine. I just want enough time to be given to these pharma companies to conduct all necessary studies before rolling out the vaccines in younger kids.
Of all the uncertainties surrounding the vaccine rollout and distribution, one thing I am certain about is our victory. Right now, it’s a question of when rather than if. We will beat this virus. Pending that time, however, we need to follow all necessary COVID guidelines.
We have come too far to start slacking. Stay safe. Wear a mask.
This article was written by Dr. Adil Manzoor DO, a Board Certified Internist & Board Eligible Pediatrician, who works as a Hospitalist, and Emergency Room Physician. He is also the current President of Garden State Street Medicine, a non-profit organization whose sole purpose is to provide free preventive and acute urgent care services for the homeless. He is also the co-founder of his own unique medical practice Mobile Medicine NJ.
References
· https://www.washington post.com/health/2021/03/31/children-covid-vaccine/
