Dr. Mark Sawyer, an infectious disease specialist with Rady Children's Hospital and UCSD who served on the FDA panel that approved the COVID-19 vaccines, joined KPBS Midday Edition to answer some questions about the vaccines for babies and toddlers.
A: Well, for the first two doses, it's the same as it has been for older children and adults. So the Moderna vaccine is spaced apart by four weeks, and the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is spaced apart by three weeks for the first two doses. And then, for Pfizer-BioNTech, the dose No. 3 comes two months after the second dose. So it's three weeks, and then two months, and then you're done with the Pfizer-BioNTech series.A: I certainly have that concern.
Q: The White House has said the vaccine could be available as soon as next week. Will the vaccines be available through a pediatrician or some other way? A: The vaccine is going to be available for pediatricians to order. I know that Rady Children's Hospital is getting prepared to set up their vaccine clinics starting next week. San Diego County Public Health is also rolling out vaccine clinics, so it will be available in a number of places. It may even be available in some pharmacies, although not all pharmacies are going to be able to take the youngest age group, simply because they're not used to dealing with that young population.
Q: Only about 30% of kids in America, 5 through 11, have gotten vaccinated so far, and they've been eligible to receive the vaccine since last year. Are you concerned that parents will be hesitant to get their very young children vaccinated? A: I'm sure there will be a subset of parents who hesitate and want to wait even longer to vaccinate. The important points that I want those parents to think about as they make that decision is that, although COVID is generally not severe in young children, it can be severe. We've had dozens and dozens of children hospitalized here at Rady Children's Hospital. We've had children on ventilators.
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