Parents weigh in on COVID vaccine boosters for their kids

Pfizer booster approved for children 5-11: Parents weigh in

Hal Eisner speaks with local parents about whether they plan to have their children get the Pfizer COVID booster.

ENCINO, Calif. - "Absolutely not," exclaims Hesby Oaks Elementary School parent Mike Hanassab, when asked if he’d have his soon get a COVID-19 vaccine booster now that the FDA has given emergency approval to a Pfizer booster for kids 5 to 11.

He says, "My opinion is [to] stop pushing it on the kids and pushing it on the parents. Let everyone make their own decision. Let's be done with it."

Not everyone picking up their kids at school felt the same way. Parent Steve Hidinger told FOX11, "I know that my son is vaccinated," adding he’ll "most likely" have him get a booster. About his kids, parent Ash Minahi said, "I'm excited for it to some degree, [because] they already had their first shot and their second shot and they felt empowered and freer per se than before."

Meanwhile, Pediatric ICU Physician Dr. Rishma Chand says she's happy because — just like with adults — pediatric vaccine doses wane and drop off in effectiveness.

"I'm happy to hear that the FDA has approved this… And, especially during this omicron surge we have seen that the initial effectiveness of the initial vaccine dropped from 68% to about 12% against infection," Dr. Chand said.

The doctor says she's had parents in her own practice that haven't wanted to get the booster, but she says she tries to explain to them the benefit which to her is a continuation of the protection offered by the initial vaccines.

If you do plan to have your child get the booster, doctors say it should come five months after the initial series of vaccines.