The Pfizer vaccine was just approved for emergency use authorization use, for children ages 12 -15.
The news impacts some 17 million American kids in that age group, including more than 300,000 Colorado 12 to 15-year-olds. Whether or not parents will line up in droves, adopt a wait-and-see approach, or flatly refuse to get their middle-school and young teens vaccinated remains to be seen.
At this time, the safety data shows no significant side effects for children age 12 – 15. Early efficacy data also looks excellent as it does for adults. And the more children that can be vaccinated, the better. Both summer activities and return to school in person in the fall will be safer and easier. Schools across the state are in a variety of reopening phases for in-person instruction, and hard at work on their strategic plans for the fall 2021 session.
No K-12 school district is so far requiring students in the CDC-approved age ranges to get the vaccines. All vaccines are still being given under emergency authorization by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Both Cherry Creek Public Schools and Aurora Public Schools are among the first public school systems to “strongly recommend “that their employees get vaccinated. So far none are making it a condition of employment.
But according to CNBC, “hundreds of colleges and universities” are beginning to make their vaccination requirements known. Colleges have struggled to control outbreaks on campus this past year, making mandatory the requirement that come this fall, students who want to attend must show proof of vaccination. “Vaccinations are an important tool for making the fall semester safe,” says Antonio Calcado, who leads Rutgers’ COVID-19 task force. “We felt that just simply encouraging would not have the same effect as a requirement.”
For more information about COVID-19 vaccines, eligibility, and appointments in Chaffee County, see the links below:
http://chaffeecounty.org/Public-Health-Coronavirus
https://www.hrrmc.com/covid-19-updates/covid-19-vaccine/
Pharmacies in the county are getting shipments of vaccines. Vaccine clinics include Buena Vista Drug, Valley-Wide Health, Safeway, and Salida Pharmacy.
Featured image: The CDC has approved the Pfizer vaccine to protect teens from coronavirus. Photo courtesy CDC and unsplash
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