PITTSBURGH — Doctors with UPMC held a news conference on Friday, seeking to combat vaccine hesitancy among pregnant women and parents who may feel uncertain about vaccinating their younger children.
This week, Pfizer’s low-dose shot was approved for children ages 5 to 11, and as of Wednesday, UPMC doctors began administering it.
Pediatrician Dr. Alejandro Hoberman acknowledged that while older adults are more at risk of dying or facing severe outcomes from COVID-19 than children are, the virus now ranks among the top ten causes of death in kids. He urged parents to get their children vaccinated.
Across the United States, 750 children have died from COVID-19, which is four times higher than in any single flu epidemic within the last 20 years, Hoberman said.
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Of children in the 5-11 age group, 94 deaths have been reported. Doctors stated that within one day of the shot being authorized for that group, roughly 10,000 appointments were made.
Hoberman stated that some hesitant parents have expressed concerns over myocarditis, a heart condition that has been linked to the vaccine. Dr. Hoberman said the benefits of the vaccine outweigh the risk of that condition.
“Myocarditis is rare, likely five per million doses,” he said. “And the vast majority of children fully recover promptly. Multiple sources of data in this country and abroad show that serious vaccine side effects are very rare.”
Doctors stated that studies also show the vaccines are safe for another group that has tended to be hesitant: pregnant women.
Dr. Richard Beigi stated that thousands of pregnant mothers who received the shot on or close to one year ago “have given birth to thousands of healthy babies without any evidence of negative effects on the pregnancy.”
Similarly, he said “tens of thousands of women have received the COVID-19 vaccine before getting pregnant and have not had any struggles related to infertility whatsoever.”
He called contrary claims “myths” and stated that the real risk unvaccinated pregnant women face is catching COVID-19.
Locally, he said that “some mothers have unfortunately lost their lives and others were so sick around the time of delivery from COVID 19 that they have not been able to see their newborn for weeks.”
UPMC is hosting a vaccination clinic for pregnant women to receive their first set of shots or even boosters on November 17, from 2 to 5 p.m. at UPMC Magee. Anyone interested in scheduling should call 412-641-4361.
Patients or parents who want to schedule a vaccine for themselves or their children should visit Vaccine.UPMC.com or call 844-UPMCVAC (844-876-2822).
Existing UPMC Children’s Community Pediatrics families can schedule an appointment online at ChildrensPeds.com/COVIDVaccine.
Doctors stated the hospital is also working to set up vaccine clinics within schools or communities and is interested in hearing from leaders looking to host one.