The Food and Drug Administration is limiting the number of people who qualify for COVID-19 vaccinations. On Wednesday, the FDA approved shots from three companies for seniors, but for two of them, require younger adults and children over six months old to have at least one high-risk health condition. Lexington pediatrician Dr. Elizabeth Hawse said she’s concerned the new rules will result in fewer children being vaccinated.
“People under two years of age, when they get COVID, they have the same hospitalization rate, are very similar to elderly people over age 65, so that is the actual data, the science.”
Hawse is Kentucky’s immunization representative for the American Academy of Pediatrics. She said medical professionals are still awaiting guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about whether they should be vaccinated.
“I try to follow CDC recommendations for healthcare workers and immunize myself and our nurses so that we're not catching things and spreading them to infants who are vulnerable. Are we supposed to get a covid vaccine this year? We're under 65 in my office.”
In May, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the COVID-19 vaccine will no longer be in the CDC's recommended immunization schedule for healthy children and pregnant women.
