COLUMBUS, Ohio — Gov. Mike DeWine said Ohio will expand vaccine eligibility to 12 to 15-year-olds as soon as Wednesday, following expanded authorization of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine by the Food and Drug Administration.
Ohio asked to store more than 100,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine this week in anticipation of the expanded authorization.
Vaccine uptake is expected to be lower among kids age 12-15 due to parental hesitancy about the shot, according to officials in Ohio.
Youngstown City School District had only three of its 1,300 eligible 16 and older students register for its at-school vaccination clinics.
The district's Supervisor of Nursing Kenyetta Burr said school representatives contacted every family but there was a shocking lack of interest in vaccination among the students.
“We sent letters home with all the paperwork explaining what we were offering,” Burr said. “It seems to me a lot of parents are uncomfortable. They're unsure of how the vaccine is going to affect their children being that this is the first time it's been offered to that age group."
A study by the Kaiser Family Foundation’s COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor in April found that just 3 in 10 parents said they would be willing to get their children vaccinated as soon as it becomes available.
Burr said she staffed six nurses for each of the vaccine clinics at the Youngstown schools and had 360 doses available, many of which will need to be transported to QUICKmed Urgent Care to try to use in the general population.
Asked if demand was low because students have already been vaccinated elsewhere, Burr said that was not the case.
“We haven't had any response saying that they've gotten it elsewhere,” she said.
Instead, she said parents are telling her: “You’re not putting that in my child,” or “my child is not a guinea pig.”
Among the kids themselves, she hasn’t seen the same hesitancy.
Burr said some parents in the district don’t think any vaccines should be given in school.
“It's tough whenever you're talking about someone's child and vaccinating them. We have parents that don't want to get regular vaccinations for their child, so asking them to get a COVID vaccine is kind of pushing it at some point,” she said.
DeWine issued a statement Monday evening saying he was encouraged by the news and hopeful Ohio could build upon its 41.5% vaccination rate.
“Following a recommendation from the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) and the CDC, Ohio will immediately expand vaccine eligibility to youth ages 12-15 and provide appropriate guidance for parents, guardians, and vaccine providers across the state. Vaccines are our way back to a more normal life," the statement read.
The governor is among a party of six governors set to meet with President Joe Biden Tuesday to discuss the White House’s goal to vaccinate 70% of the U.S. and the approaches that states are taking to boost uptake, Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Monday afternoon.
Previously, the vaccine was authorized for those 16 years and older. The companies applied for the expanded approval in early April. Phase 3 clinical trial data showed 100% efficacy and strong antibody responses for the 12-15 age group, according to the companies.
Pfizer said it plans to seek expanded EUA again in September for children 2-11. The company is currently in a trial for testing kids as young as 6-months-old to 11-years-old.
Vaccinations have already begun in the U.S. for kids 12-15, including in Georgia, but most states are waiting for the recommendation of the CDC committee Wednesday, according to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital’s Dr. Robert Frenck, who is the director of vaccine research and is leading the hospital’s participation in the Pfizer vaccine trial in children.
“The FDA provides the EUA (Emergency Use Authorization), so technically as soon as the FDA has said okay, you may go ahead and start doing it — FDA licenses vaccine and then the ACIP provides recommendations,” he told Spectrum News during a virtual event Tuesday morning. “There’s nothing wrong with them starting today. The ACIP will just provide their recommendations tomorrow.”
Vaccinations are expected to begin for the age group by Thursday, according to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital officials, and the hospital is not requiring proof of age.
Cincinnati Children’s was among the first four hospitals nationwide to enroll children 5-11 in Pfizer’s vaccine trial after previously enrolling children in the age group that is now eligible for vaccination.
Frenck said state health departments are in an alliance with the CDC. Following the meeting Wednesday, he expects Ohio to quickly permit vaccinations, which he hopes will bring case rates down among teenagers currently contracting and transmitting the virus at among the highest rates.
“I would think it would be basically simultaneous of Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, with the decision made by the ACIP,” he said.