SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS RADIO) – Kids six months and older can finally get vaccinated for COVID-19, but will their parents allow them to get the shot?
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Dr. Amesh Adalja, Senior Scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, told KCBS Radio's "Ask An Expert" this progression is a very important step in the life of COVID-19.
"What it does is signify that COVID-19 is becoming more manageable when the entire population can be vaccinated if they choose to be," he said. "It does help and it will be very important, especially for high-risk children who have been unable to be vaccinated until now."
However, Adalja has less optimism on the actual administration of the vaccine for infants and toddlers. "Do I think that there’s going to be major uptake of this vaccine? Probably not if you judge by the five to 11 year uptake," he explained.
Many parents have expressed vaccine hesitancy in getting their children vaccinated against the virus. One way to encourage parents that the shot is safe is through their primary care doctor.
"We know that parents trust their primary care physicians more than they trust a nameless, faceless health department or a drug store where they might be getting vaccinated or a mass vaccination site," Adalja said. "When they're with their family medicine doctor they have the opportunity to ask questions of someone who they trust, who gilded all of their other health care needs."
Moving forward, Adalja said this is the best course of action to settle parents' vaccination worries. "I think this is a good thing, especially with pediatrics, but it was something we should’ve probably done with adults as well," he explained.
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