Colorado health experts worry COVID vaccination rates for babies, toddlers will be low

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) - On Tuesday, Pfizer submitted an application to the Food and Drug Administration for Emergency Use Authorization on its COVID-19 vaccine for kids under five. But dismal vaccination numbers for kids five to 11 are leading some to worry the same trend will continue for babies and toddlers.

"If we've seen vaccine hesitancy in our adult population, that definitely tends to have a trickle-down and amplification effect on the decisions that parents make about vaccinating their children,” said Dr. Becky Blackwell, Pediatrician and Chief Medical Officer for Centura Health's St. Anthony Summit Hospital.

This is a concern because there are cases of children getting seriously ill from COVID, and even those who have mild-to-no symptoms can still spread the virus to vulnerable people.

"Children tend to get a lot of flu and a lot of viral contagious illnesses because they're little children and they share and their personal hygiene isn't perfect," said Dr. Blackwell. "That's part of being a child. So anything that a parent can do to protect their child from those illnesses, particularly something like COVID that we know can be significant and serious for some children, will help both their child and our community at large."

In Colorado, only around 29 percent of kids five to 11 are fully vaccinated, and that number is even lower nationally at about 22 percent.

"I think one misconception I hear a lot, is that parents are worried that it was rushed or made too quickly," said Dr. Elisabeth Vanse, Medical Director of Pediatrics at Peak Vista. "What I try to reassure families is that it had to go through all the same testing, all the same safety protocols as any other vaccine that we would get as adults or the other childhood vaccines. On top of that, now the vaccine has been out for almost a year for adults, and so there's been a lot of people closely watching as it's been given out, and we have not seen any serious side effects with kids in the five to 11 year age group or the 12 to 17 age group.”

Another hesitation cited is the fear the vaccine could affect growth or have side effects that pop up later on in life. But doctors say rare, severe side effects don’t take that long and will start to show within a couple of months at the latest.

"The vaccine side effects are usually very close to when you get the vaccine, within a day or two days," said Dr. Vanse. "We can never say never and that there won't be a long term side effects, but the chance of that is extremely low and wouldn't be the case with any other vaccines that we've seen.”

One thing that could increase vaccinations for kids under five, is the fact they’re already in the doctor's office for other shots every few months.

"Kids that are six months to four years old are getting childhood vaccines really frequently," said Dr. Vanse. "So they're here in the office a little bit more often than school-age kids. So as a pediatrician, I'll have some more opportunities to talk to them and answer questions. You can also do the COVID vaccine along with any of your other childhood vaccines.”

Doctors say if you're still concerned about the vaccine or the effects it may have on your child, the best resource you have is your child's pediatrician.

"Parents are more cautious of their children," said Dr. Vanse. "We want to make sure this vaccine is safe, we want to make sure anything we do for them is not going to be harmful. I'd like to reassure families this is safe, it is effective, it has been tested. Also, the kids that are five to 11 get a smaller dose than the adult dose, it's a third of the adult vaccine, which I think is important for families to know too."

The FDA's independent advisers are already scheduled to have a public hearing on Feb. 15.