Colorado governor urges Biden administration to act on COVID vax for children under 5 – ^

Governor Polis wrote a letter today to President Biden today urging the White House to provide more urgency and action from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to authorize a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine for children under 5 years of age. Colorado is home to a quarter million children younger than the age of 5 and the Polis administration’s roadmap which is supported by local leaders also urged the FDA to approve the vaccine for all ages.

 

“Coloradans have stepped up — 81.88% of those eligible have received the doctor-approved vaccine, ranking our state among the top in the country and we have one of the lowest death rates per capita. We have made great strides as a nation in combating the virus — but we have more work to do.  Last year, heroic Colorado kids ages 5 to 11 participated in the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine trials. Thanks to their bravery, more American children are now able to access the lifesaving COVID-19 vaccine, but there are more than a quarter million children in Colorado younger than 5 who remain at-risk to this pandemic. I write today to request your assistance in escalating the urgency for emergency consideration of safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines for children under 5 years of age,” Governor Polis wrote.

 

Without access to vaccines for families with children under 5, many communities and kids remain vulnerable, leaving families and education settings vulnerable to disease transmission. Ensuring the vaccine is accessible for families with children under 5 will help keep our kids in the classroom, give parents more peace of mind, and help put the pandemic behind us. Colorado parents are making long-awaited plans to see grandparents and loved ones but are faced with the third summer for their children to remain unprotected — many parents of young children feel left behind, and are rightfully displeased that the FDA’s lack of action and urgency has left them unable to protect their children and loved ones like everyone else,” the Governor wrote. 

 

“In March of this year, we outlined Colorado’s proactive and innovative plan to keep Coloradans safe and healthy and maintain a level of preparedness for future waves of COVID-19 and future crises. In this plan, we urged the federal government to continue your partnership and implement a national strategy for long-term COVID planning. COVID-19 vaccines for children younger than 5 will be integral to our success. We can strengthen community immunity in preparation for the next surge. We need bold federal action and support to give the authorization of a lifesaving COVID-19 vaccine for our youngest children the attention, urgency and action it deserves,” the letter concludes.