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White House unveils plan to vaccinate kids aged 5 to 11

Wednesday, 20 October 2021 9:44 PM [ Last Update: Wednesday, 20 October 2021 9:44 PM ]

The administration of US President Joe Biden has unveiled a new plan to vaccinate kids between 5 to 11 as soon as the FDA approves the Covid-19 shots for them, a move that it claims would protect more than 28 million people across the country.

“Since taking office, President Biden has mobilized a whole-of-government effort to get Americans vaccinated and end the pandemic,” the White House announced in a statement on Wednesday.

“Today, 2 in 3 eligible individuals – 189 million Americans – are fully vaccinated. That’s an increase from approximately 2 million reported when the President took office. The potential authorization of the first Covid-19 vaccine for children ages 5-11, which is currently under consideration by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), would be another major milestone in our efforts to build on this historic progress and protect even more Americans,” it added.

Poll: Majority of parents in US against school vaccine mandates

Most of parents in the United States are opposed with Covid-19 vaccination mandates at schools even after the FDA’s full approval of the existing vaccines, a new poll revealed.

The decision comes after Pfizer and BioNTech companies asked the FDA to approve the emergency use of their vaccine for 5- to 11-year-olds.

The FDA is set to hold a meeting on Oct. 26, and the organization’s ruling could come in a few days, possibly clearing a path for the CDC to make recommendations on a pediatric dose in early November.

However, different surveys show that a large number of parents are still dubious about getting their children vaccinated.

According to a poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation released late September, only one in three parents told they plan to get their children inoculated once a vaccine is authorized.

Despite widespread vaccination, the US still leads the world in Covid-19 fatalities, with over 700,000 deaths per day. Globally, the pandemic is set to surpass 5 million deaths.

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