MCHS doctors discuss ways to keep children safe as they head back to the classroom

As students begin returning to school, there are still many lingering questions related to masking, the delta variant, social distancing and COVID-19 vaccines.  Dr. Gregory Poland, director of Mayo Clinic’s Vaccine Research Group spoke with KAUS News and talked about when a COVID-19 vaccine will be available for children under the age of 12…

Dr. Nipunie Rajapakse, a Mayo Clinic Children’s Center pediatric infectious disease specialist talked about what symptoms parents and caregivers should be on the lookout for concerning the Delta variant of COVID-19…

Dr. Rajapakse was also asked if school aged children that can and cannot be vaccinated at this time should all be wearing masks…

Experts with Mayo Clinic stated in a news release that kids 12 and older can get the vaccine in the U.S. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine emergency use authorization for children ages 12 through 15. The FDA first gave this vaccine emergency use authorization for people age 16 and older in late 2020.

The Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine requires two injections given 21 days apart. The second dose can be given up to six weeks after the first dose, if needed.  They added that research has shown that the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine is 100% effective in preventing the COVID-19 virus in children ages 12 through 15. Previous research has shown that the vaccine is 95% effective in preventing the COVID-19 virus with symptoms in people age 16 and older.