CLEVELAND — Experts say vaccinating children is an important step in helping them get back to normal. But many acknowledge the decision for parents may be difficult given the newness of the vaccine, as well as the illness' less severe impacts on children, compared to older people.
So where do things stand with children and COVID-19? Eighteen months after the coronavirus took hold in the United States, its grip has shifted. Whereas once children rarely showed up in hospitals, that has now changed according to Dr. Paul Offit, director of the Vaccine Education Center and an attending physician in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.
"We know that when the virus first came into the United States, children accounted for less than 3 percent of cases. Now they account for 27 percent of cases. We'll have 200,000 cases of disease in children, a week or 250,000 cases a week," Dr. Offit says.
That takes us to today: with roughly 28 million children ages five to 11 eligible this week's authorization is a potential game-changer in the fight against the pandemic.
"I think it's great. I think all kids need vaccinations because it's still spreading to kids," said one mother.
Another said the development does not change her opinion at all: "I have an almost two-year old, a six-year old and a seven-year old, and I will not be getting them vaccinated right now," said one mom who talked with 3News' Marisa Saenz in October.
While parents are divided and in some cases still undecided, here is what is clear: in that 5 to 11 age range 8,300 children have been hospitalized with covid, 146 have died. These numbers make COVID-19 the eighth highest killer according to both the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and the FDA.
"Does Covid-19 cause problems for most children? The answer is no. But tell that to the parents of the children who are fighting for their lives as we speak," said Dr. Shelly Senders, a Pediatric Specialist with the Cleveland Clinic.
Chlidren hospitalized with Covid tend to have underlying health conditions such as obesity or diabetes. And then there's MIS-C, which is Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in children. Rare, but life-threatening, it can cause a hyperactive immune response that attacks the body. 5,200 children in the U.S. diagnosed with Covid have developed the complication. It's most common among kids six to 11 who had no pre-existing conditions and were considered healthy.
"I'd never heard of it or I would have had her in there sooner. That night she ended up in the ICU. And the next day she was put on the ventilator," said Tara Copeland, whose young daughter contracted MIS-C.
It's a reality no parent wants to face as they bear the weight of a decision, while balancing medical advice with head, heart and instinct for the ones they love.
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