5 Reasons Your Child Should Get the COVID-19 Vaccination

With 78% of the total population having received at least one COVID-19 vaccination, there remains a gaping hole in those who are vaccinated - the youngest children. The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) now recommends COVID-19 vaccination for children aged 6 months and older. This means that approximately 18 million additional children are now eligible to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

Like adults and teens who contracted COVID-19, children can spread the disease when they are asymptomatic. In addition, although children may have milder symptoms when infected with COVID-19, there are still many cases of children getting severe lung infections and requiring hospitalization. Other complications, such as multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C), may require intensive care or result in long-lasting symptoms. And while young children are less likely to have severe illness initially, they are still susceptible to long COVID symptoms long after recovering from their illness.

Vaccinating your children can help protect them and your family and bring the pandemic to an end faster. Here are the top 5 reasons experts recommend vaccinating your children:

1. COVID-19 vaccines can help prevent your children from getting COVID-19

Everyone is at risk for contracting COVID-19, and symptoms can be severe at any age. Especially considering the more contagious omicron variant, children are at risk for contracting and spreading the virus. The CDC now recommends COVID-19 vaccination for children aged 6 months through 4 years after reviewing research findings from Pfizer and Moderna showing that their COVID-19 vaccines are effective in reducing the risk of infection and severe COVID-19 illness. COVID-19 vaccines have already been safely administered to millions of children ages 5-17 and shows good protection against severe disease.

2. It can help your family get back to a more normal life

Vaccinating your children reduces their risk of being infected with COVID-19, which can help keep them from being sick. This means that they can stay in daycare and school to continue their education uninterrupted. Older children will be more likely to be able to participate in sports and clubs and return to fun activities like play dates and spending time with friends outside of the house, and it’s more likely to have uninterrupted travel plans. Depending on your school’s policies, vaccinated children without symptoms may not be required to quarantine after exposure to someone who tested positive for COVID-19, which also helps keep parents working uninterrupted.

3. It protects your family, friends and teachers

Vaccination not only reduces the risk of short- and long-term health complications from COVID-19, but it also slows the spread of the disease by preventing it from being passed onto others that are at high-risk for severe COVID-19 illness, like grandparents or daycare staff with underlying medical conditions. This means there are less likely to be disruptions in childcare because of COVID-19 cases within daycare.

Also, because vaccines reduce the likelihood of transmission of the virus, it also reduces the chance for the virus to mutate into variants which might be more infectious or resistant to vaccines. The reduction in infections overall leads to fewer hospitalizations and deaths in the community and slows the emergence of new coronavirus variants such as the omicron variant.

4. It sets an example for others in your community

For decades, vaccines for infectious diseases have been recommended for children and are a mandatory public health measure in many school systems. Parents who are vocal and enthusiastic about vaccinating their kids should encourage others in their community to act as well.

A study done by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that one in five parents will immediately vaccinate their kids under age 5, which will protect other family members, friends and school staff/faculty. You play a critical role in encouraging other parents to vaccinate their kids and make the right decisions for their family.

5. COVID-19 vaccines are safe

The decision by FDA and CDC to recommend Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccination for younger children followed an extensive review of safety, immune response and efficacy data. Children may have some mild side effects like other routine childhood vaccinations including pain, redness and swelling at the injection site and fever. The likelihood of severe side effects from vaccination are rare. COVID-19 vaccines continue to be monitored for safety. Parents are encouraged to enroll their children in v-safe to share how their child is feeling after vaccination.

Some parents have concerns about how quickly the vaccine was developed and approved. Vaccine testing is and has historically been a rigorous process. Policies and scientific consensus changes when new data emerges – this is a good thing which ensures that public health and safety are prioritized.

It’s important to know that scientists did not take risky shortcuts on the science. Because development of a COVID-19 vaccine was such a priority around the world, an incredible number of resources were put into these studies and the scientists worked tirelessly to ensure that standard scientific design was adhered to. Scientists already knew quite a bit about coronaviruses from previous breakouts, and the technology behind mRNA vaccines had been in development for over a decade. The studies were able to be conducted very quickly because so many people volunteered, and the review process was sped up because committee hearings and data reviews were prioritized.

To find out more about the COVID-19 vaccine, visit our vaccine tracker.