SAN DIEGO — On Saturday, Kaiser Permanente help their “Spooky Saturday” event where kids of all ages could receive a flu shot or any other pediatric vaccine.
Kids and adults alike wore their Halloween costumes and were given a special holiday gift.
“This year, more than ever, it is essential to protect yourself, your family, and your friends by getting vaccinated,” said Rita Feghali, Chief of Pediatrics for Kaiser Permanente San Diego. “When we receive our annual flu shot, we greatly lower our risk of catching the flu, developing flu-related complications, visits to doctors, and missed school or workdays due to illness.”
Although Saturday's event did not include COVID-19 vaccines, it came a day after the FDA approved the COVID-19 vaccine for kids ages 5-11.
The FDA cleared kid-size doses — just a third of the amount given to teens and adults — for emergency use, and up to 28 million more American children could be eligible for vaccinations as early as next week.
One more regulatory hurdle remains: On Tuesday, advisers to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will make more detailed recommendations on which youngsters should get vaccinated, with a final decision by the agency’s director expected shortly afterwards.
“Vaccinating younger children against COVID-19 will bring us closer to returning to a sense of normalcy,” Dr. Janet Woodcock, the acting FDA commissioner, said in a statement. “Our comprehensive and rigorous evaluation of the data pertaining to the vaccine’s safety and effectiveness should help assure parents and guardians that this vaccine meets our high standards.”
While children are at lower risk of severe illness or death from COVID-19 than older people, 5- to 11-year-olds still have been seriously affected -- including over 8,300 hospitalizations, about a third requiring intensive care, and nearly 100 deaths since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, according to the FDA.
WATCH RELATED: FDA authorizes emergency use for Pfizer COVID vaccine in children age 5 to 11