PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — While COVID-19 vaccines have been approved for children as young as 6 months, access to vaccines for that age group is still limited. The Black Doctors COVID-19 Consortium at the Dr. Ala Stanford Center for Health Equity is hosting a clinic this week to make it easier for parents to get shots for their young ones.
Dr. Pierre Chanoine, a pediatrician of nearly 20 years, and co-chief medical officer of the Center, says he’s encouraging parents to get their young kids vaccinated.
“I think we anticipated that decision was coming up, in June, so we had been planning to make sure that we would have people available, and that we could try and see and get things going as quickly as possible,” Chanoine said.
He says he understands that some parents are hesitant.
“Any time you're dealing with the unknown, I think it's important to remember that people are going to have their natural apprehensions. But I think the answer is: Our best defense against terrible outcomes and significant illness is being vaccinated,” Chanoine said. “And I would also add that, the vaccine is safe, the side effects I think are negligible.”
A Kaiser Family Foundation report found that fewer than one in five parents said they would get their children under age 5 vaccinated against COVID-19 if the vaccine were approved. KYW Newsradio Medical Editor Dr. Brian McDonough says this should not come as a surprise.
"Early on in the pandemic — before we knew about long COVID and lingering effects — the medical establishment said young people could escape complications from COVID-19," McDonough said "Many still believe this."
Also, he said, there is simple human nature to consider: People want to believe COVID-19 is gone.
President Joe Biden, public health authorities and pediatricians have acknowledged that getting some parents on board may be a challenge, given disappointing vaccination rates — about 30% — in school-age kids.
The CDC advises vaccination even for those who already had COVID-19 to protect against reinfection, and says it is OK to get other vaccines at the same time. For the littlest kids, there's Pfizer’s three-shot series or Moderna’s two shots.
Dr. Pam Zeitlin, director of pediatric medicine at National Jewish Health in Denver, recommends parents get their kids vaccinated as soon as possible.
"Some parents are afraid that the younger the child, the more vulnerable they might be to vaccine side effects," Zeitlin said, but that’s not what Pfizer and Moderna studies found. Side effects were similar to what is seen with other childhood vaccines — fever, irritability and fatigue.
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Roughly 18 million youngsters under 5 are eligible tom receive low doses of the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, but there are restrictions on the age of children pharmacists in Pennsylvania are allowed to vaccinate.
“Most pharmacies [in Pennsylvania] don't vaccinate children under 3. Obviously, this vaccine is indicated for ages 6 months to 5 — in the case of Moderna, through age 5; case of Pfizer, up to age 5,” Chanione said.
“Unless there's some sort of exemption granted, they will not be able to provide the vaccine. That's why I think it's so important for health centers, community centers, like ours, pediatricians’ offices, and obviously children's hospitals, to be very involved in getting these young children their vaccines.”
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He says the clinic welcomes walk-ins as well as appointments. It will take place on Thursday and Friday, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., at the Deliverance Church campus in North Philadelphia, 2001 Lehigh Ave.
Through their pediatricians or the federal vaccine provider website, parents can find other places to take their young children.