Plan vaccinations for 12 to 15 years old

Buffalo, NY (WKBW) — Some local doctors advise parents who are worried about getting their children aged 12 to 15 years vaccinated.

The FDA has approved an emergency use of the Pfizer vaccine for teens. The CDC will allow vaccines for that age group as early as this week.

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“We were really waiting for this,” declared Dr. Stephen Lana, a Delaware pediatrician at Buffalo.

Dr. Lana says vaccination of this age group will greatly help parents return to their normal daily routines in school and family life in our community and protect their families.

“Probably a game changer. — That’s great,” Dr. Lana replied. “We want to keep these children healthy. The best way to keep them healthy is to give them very effective and safe vaccine protection.”

Starting next week, Dr. Lana says the Erie County Health Department will offer a batch of Pfizer vaccines for patients over the age of 12.

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“Most of our parents and most of our patients are aware of the limitations of not being vaccinated, not to mention the risk of not being vaccinated, so they want to be vaccinated. “I am,” explained Dr. Lana.

The FDA now states that it is safe to provide protection to teens after thorough testing.

“All in all, I think we have very good safety and efficacy signals,” said Dr. John Celic, an epidemiologist at Calerida Health.

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Dr. Celic states that the study is very powerful and has proven safe for children aged 12 to 15 years.

“It also shows safety, good antibody levels, and no illness,” said Dr. Celic.

Dr. Lana says it is one of the safest vaccines.

“We were given hundreds of millions, hundreds of millions of doses,” said Dr. Lana.

The mother of three children at Buffalo Public School says she and her husband are discussing getting their children vaccinated.

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Aimiamia McCray has two sons, 12 and 4, and a daughter, 11 years old.

“Are you going to vaccinate children of this age?” Buckley asked.

“For my two sons-I’m thinking about the possibility of them being vaccinated,” McCray replied.

McRae says she will consult an allergist when she becomes eligible because she has a peanut allergy and is afraid that she may respond to the vaccine.

Photo courtesy of Aimiamia McCray

“It’s a very smart and intriguing virus, so it’s highly recommended that the school system mandates the right children to get it,” McRae said. “I think it makes sense to make it mandatory for children who are healthy enough and have been shown to be vaccinated.”

“Children are much more likely to get Covid now than to get measles. Still, we are vaccinated against measles and actually oblige it. “Dr. Lana said.

However, McRae said he was hesitant about the vaccine.

“No one knows what they actually do for you or how you respond to it when you start the actual vaccination,” McRae explained.

McRae said investigations should be conducted to understand the virus when persuading parents to vaccinate their children.

“Understand the implications of not being vaccinated and what it can do for you and your family, as well as our community,” McRae explained.

“We want to go back to something similar to normal. This is our way,” Dr. Celic replied.

Some believe that vaccine testing is too fast, but Dr. Cerrick disagrees.

He said the first trial of about 150,000 people took place almost a year ago.

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“These are very large studies and it’s been nearly a year since the first trials started, so we have a very good track record right now,” explains Dr. Cerrick.

Dr. Celic also pointed out that most side effects occur within a few months and we are well beyond that time frame.

“It’s very safe,” said Dr. Celic.

Research on Pfizer vaccines continues from 6 months to 11 years of age, but safety and efficacy results are not expected until late fall.