80% of Children Ages 5 to 11 Are Not Fully Vaccinated, CDC Says

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) told Forbes that an estimated 80% of children aged five to 11 are not yet fully vaccinated with the Pfizer and BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.

CDC data revealed that only 30.5% of children ages five to 11 had received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose, while 21.8% had completed the two vaccine doses. The figure represents 8.3 million of the 28 million children in the particular age group.

Low vaccination rate among children aged five to 11

According to Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF), the number of first doses administered to children aged five to eleven remains far below its early peak. The organization noted a slight increase in December but declined in January.

The highest vaccination rate for children aged five to 11 years old is in New England, particularly in Vermont, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Maine, and Connecticut. Meanwhile, eight of the ten states with the lowest vaccine rates are in the South, including South Carolina, Georgia, West Virginia, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Louisiana, Alabama, and Mississippi.

Read Also: Pfizer Sees Availability of COVID Vaccine for Children 5 and Below in February

Doubts on the effects of the vaccine

A poll conducted by KFF in January revealed that 52% of the parents of the said age group are opposed to or unsure of vaccinating their child. At least 24% are certain that they will not get their child vaccinated.

Meanwhile, the January poll also revealed that 9% of the parents say that they will only have their kids vaccinated if required, while 19% are on a "wait and see" mode.

The new data is an improvement from a poll created in November when the vaccine shots were initially rolled out. The previous data indicated that 68% of the parents were hesitant or against vaccination. The data also showed that 29% of the parents said that they would "definitely not" inoculate their kids.

Despite the surge of COVID-19 hospitalization among children due to the omicron variant, 79% of the parents of children ages five to 17 expressed that omicron did not make a difference in their decision on their kid's vaccination. Only 14% said that they are likely to inoculate their children.

Hesitancy of Parent to Vaccinate Kids Below Five Years Old

Pfizer and Biotech recently announced that they asked the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to expand its Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) of their vaccine to include children aged six months to five years old. There are three expected vaccine doses, but since the data on the effectiveness of the third vaccine is still unavailable, Pfizer and Biotech asked the FDA to approve the first two shots, so parents can start vaccinating their kids.

However, a recent KFF poll survey also indicated that only 31% of parents of children under five are willing to have their child vaccinated as soon as the shot is allowed.

The poll also revealed that 38% are against vaccinating their kids and will only do so if required.

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