Medical practices await green light to give COVID vaccines to younger kids

PLAINVIEW, N.Y. - The refrigerator at Allied Physicians Group in Plainview is packed in anticipation of administering hundreds of doses to patients ages 5 to 11 both in the office and at mass vaccination events in the coming weeks. The goal is to get as many kids in the age group vaccinated as quickly as possible.

Dr. Brian Goldstein understands why some parents may be hesitant but encourages them to believe in science.

"You're not injecting something into the body it can't handle or changing the DNA in a person," Goldstein said.

Results from a Kaiser Family Foundation poll found one in three parents will permit their children in the 5 to 11 age group to be vaccinated immediately. Two-thirds were either reluctant or opposed.

RELATED: CDC panel recommends Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for kids 5 to 11

"You have to weigh the risk of doing it and not doing it," Goldstein said. "Not doing it potentially leaves you exposed to COVID."

Younger children will receive one-third of the dose for those 12 and older and it'll be stored in smaller vials to avoid confusion.

While younger children are far less likely to get severely sick from COVID-19, studies show they can be just as likely as adults to catch and spread the disease, according to the CDC.

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