Students are preparing to go back to school, but that doesn't mean everyone feels ready. Even with safety measures like frequent hand-washing and wearing masks, people fear COVID-19 spreading quickly in the classrooms.
Health authorities say that children ages 12-17 will be first in line for a new shipment of BioNTech vaccines. However, mRNA vaccines like BioNTech have listed side effects such as heart inflammation. For this reason, some parents are hesitant.
One woman says kids should get vaccinated because the risk of COVID-19 is much higher than the risk of side effects. Another says that these vaccines are still new, and there is evidence of breakthrough infections. She says she thinks her child's immune system is strong enough without the vaccine.
Government statistics show that 32.6% of COVID-19 patients over the age of 60 had serious symptoms, but this only applied to 0.2% of patients under 20 years old.
Pediatrician Wu Chang-teng says that almost 346 million mRNA doses have been given in the United States and there have only been 1,339 cases of subsequent heart inflammation. Wu also says that the top two groups at risk for serious cases of COVID-19 are the elderly and the unvaccinated. He says for vaccination, the pros heavily outweigh the cons.
Wu also says that while there may be a slight risk for heart inflammation, these cases are usually not serious and quickly resolved with proper treatment. He is encouraging parents to get their kids vaccinated to help bring the pandemic to a close.