(Photo by Ryan Harris)
Once the vaccines receive full federal approval, they’ll go for a final check by the Western States Scientific Safety Review Group. When that’s all done, there will be plenty of supply available pretty quickly, says Andie Lyons, King County Public Health’s vaccine coordinator for kids under 2. Lyons says the first doses are set to arrive Monday and two more waves over the following couple of days, so she says everyone interested should be able to start their kids’ series within a week or two, but she recommends you make an appointment rather than trying to get the shots on a walk-in basis.
Recent polls show many parents will either refuse to let their kids take a COVID shot – or they’ll take a wait and see approach – so Lyons reminds them this approval process took longer because safety is priority one. Lyons says they understand everyone needs to gauge their own family’s needs and goals, but she says vaccines are still the best tool to protect your kids and yourself from the worst COVID outcomes. “Even though children maybe have statistically been less impacted when we look at the numbers of hospitalizations or deaths,” Lyons says, “we still see that there are severe cases in children when it comes to COVID-19, and these vaccines do a great job at preventing that severe illness and death. And, of course, the more people we have vaccinated within our community, the better the improvement is for all of us in terms of safety and staying healthy during this pandemic.”
Lyons says Public Health’s clinics will be ready for kids by later next week, and they’ll continue to work with community groups to make sure those underserved by pediatric care, with South King County a prime example, can have access to the vaccines through organizations the people in those communities trust.
