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The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) this week released an immunization schedule including evidence-based guidance for COVID-19 vaccines for children and adolescents. What some see as controversial, however, is the fact that the AAP schedule doesn’t align with recent government agency announcements. Specifically, AAP recommends the COVID vaccine for all children 6 months to 23 months of age as well as older children who are in several risk groups. By contrast, the latest Food and Drug Administration vaccine framework categorizes COVID vaccines only for those 65 years and older and those who are at high risk of serious illness. AAP also recommends the vaccine be available for any children ages 2-18 years if the child’s family requests it. Also, annual flu vaccination is still recommended for everyone 6 months and older, which AAP continues to endorse.
Here’s the why: “We extensively reviewed the most recently available data about COVID-19 risks in kids, as well as safety and effectiveness of available COVID-19 vaccines. It’s clear they are very safe for all populations. Among the reasons we decided to move to a risk-based recommendation for healthy older children is the fact that the hospitalization rate for young children and children with underlying medical conditions remains high, in line with rates for many of the other vaccine-preventable diseases for which we vaccinate,” Sean O’Leary, MD, FAAP, chair of the AAP Committee on Infectious Diseases, says in an AAP press release.
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