Yes- that’s why I said “at best”. |
I was in Japan precovid to visit my sister and couldn't believe that young people who appeared to be on a date (taking selfies, snuggling) would wear masks. She said many people wear them for anxiety reasons or even because they didn't have time to do their makeup. I think this has transferred here. |
I think (some) parents and (some) daycare directors will not come up with that strategy until it is clear that the vax for <5's is not happening "soon". We've been about 2 months away from a <5 vax since ~sept/oct now. (I realize the timelines aren't promises and things change, often for good reasons, just saying that there are people out there still waiting for this.) I'm not saying that is correct, but without clear communication from public health leaders saying that we should NOT be waiting for a vaccination to unmask the <5s and let them do most normal activities - this mindset is not going away completely. I really don't expect the CDC to make such a statement unless fully backed into a corner (i.e. FDA declines to approve EUA for <5s) - their charter is to control disease. They can't even clearly communicate that they don't recommend masking in childcare when transmission is low. |
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back to the topic...
https://www.politico.com/news/2022/04/21/biden-kids-vaccine-covid-00026798 Administration health officials had once hoped to authorize first shots for young children at the beginning of this year. But scientific setbacks and broader practical concerns within the Food and Drug Administration have slowed progress, the people with knowledge of the matter said. Now, regulators are leaning toward postponing any action until the early summer, arguing that it would be simpler and less confusing to simultaneously authorize and promote two vaccines to the public, rather than green-lighting one on a faster timetable and the other down the road. So they are hesitant to approve Moderna because of some sort of made up "confusion" even though Moderna and Pfizer were approved at different times back in 2020? Makes no sense and incredibly frustration to read knowing that Moderna can theoretically be ready first but has to wait for Pfizer to catch up. |
Yes, this has been my biggest gripe. I agree with all the posters upset about the poor communication from our public health officials. Because the under five vaccine is always happening “soon,” it means no one has come up with a viable long term, or even medium term, public health strategy for children this age. So parents are left to scrape together a strategy themselves, with more and more limited leave and understanding from the rest of society. If we all really understood that this isn’t happening soon, it would be a lot harder to tell parents to just keep holding on. |
Doesn't it give you pause that several European countries have pulled Moderna for use in people under 30? I know they are conducting a trial, but the size is again so small that less common adverse events won't be detected until post-market observations (just like it happened in the much larger adult trials). I had no issue giving my 9yo Pfizer in November, but no way would I give this Moderna shot to an under-5yo. |
I'm in this boat. One reason I am not as bothered as others seem to be about the fact that no vaccine has been made available to under 5s is that everything we know about these vaccines is that they don't do much. I too want to free my child from the burden of constant quarantines and masking, but I don't really understand why the only pathway to do that is to give our kids a vaccine that doesn't protect them. I'm probably also the wrong person to ask because my kid is now almost 5 and we'll get her the 5-11 vaccine then. Though even that one has turned out to not be very effective! But at least my kid will be in the "vaccine eligible" group and therefore it's slightly more likely that she will be able to go to school without a mask and avoid long quarantines. I think the conclusion I've reached is that there is no point in me pinning hopes for my kids safety on vaccines -- I just have to acclimate to the [albeit small] risk of Covid for her and incorporate it into our day-to-day life, the same way I've incorporated other threats to her health and safety. |
Hooray, thanks for the updates on timeline. Looks like sources were "three people with knowledge of the matter", including "one senior Biden official". I understand why the aren't making official statements, but these soft releases in the media are really frustrating (though better than silence). I can understand the argument to look at the data of both vaccines together, although that looks like at least a month delay to moderna. Back in 2020, we had NOTHING and elderly were extremely vulnerable to death. The level of emergency is less for this group, perhaps similar to flu and RSV. But I wish there were some clearer communication. |
| Do I have this clear? Moderna has data ready to go now. But we need to wait til June so they can approve pfizer and moderna together. WTF?? |
Not quite. Moderna is ready to submit data for review "by the end of this month", and would be ready to go "mid-May". Pfizer may not be ready to submit data until late May/June, for approval "mid-June". The FDA is considering the option of waiting to approve both together. I don't think it is decided yet. |
I’m not sure they’re going to approve both at all- will probably look at both together and decide which is best. Kind of makes me wonder what’s up with Moderna that they don’t want to evaluate now. |
Maybe they are taking a clue from Europe. |
| Every time I read Twitter I get so angry at these self-righteous people tweeting about how everyone should wear masks because of the "under 5s". GTFOOH. Adults should wear masks to protect other adults who are the population at highest risk of death, severe disease and long term disability from COVID. The under 5s are thankfully not at high risk. Of course I worry about DD getting COVID just like I worry about her getting injured but that doesn't mean I deprive her of social experiences or stop her from running and climbing things lest she hurt herself. She is 3 and is just learning how to interact with people and developing gross motor skills. The current CDC guidance that treats young children the same as an unvaxxed elderly person is nonsensical and harmful to young children. |
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https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/04/21/kids-covid-vaccine-delay-insulting/
"At this point in the pandemic, plenty of parents are harried and exhausted and angry. But we’re not idiots." |
Europe and many other countries have approved Moderna for 6-11. It’s the 12-17 group that’s tricky, with a higher dose and higher risk of myocarditis. |