Taking child COVID vaccination is rising and it is important. When the COVID-19 vaccine first became available to the public, individuals had to meet the age requirements of sixteen years of age and older to receive the shot. Adolescents between the ages of twelve and fifteen could receive the vaccination for emergency use only (EUA). As that age requirement has decreased to ages five to eleven within a short amount of time, family law experts like Matthew Cambó are seeing a drastic rise in concerned parents filing disputes surrounding children becoming vaccinated. As this highly divisive issue of coronavirus vaccines elevates, Cambó states that family attorneys are witnessing how complicated it is to resolve the problem.

Child COVID Vaccination Timeline

The Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine was the first vaccination available for EUA on December 11, 2020. At the time, individuals had to be sixteen years of age or older to get the vaccine for EUA. The availability of the coronavirus vaccine within these limitations was solely based on data around safety and effectiveness from clinical trials involving thousands of participants. These clinical trials during December of 2020 were deemed blinded and ongoing, controlled, yet randomized. The EUA age requirements expanded on May 10, 2021, to those ages twelve through fifteen.

It was not until August 23, 2021, when the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine was approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration for public release to those sixteen years and older. This first vaccine was seen as ready to be marketed under the name Comirnaty for those meeting the proper age, categorized as disease prevention against the coronavirus. When the FDA released its first public approval, the vaccine remained available to those twelve to fifteen years of age under EUA. Eventually, in November 2021, the CDC recommended the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for all children between ages five to eleven.

Parental Disputes

The CDC relays that children between the ages of five and eleven are not receiving the same type of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine as adolescents and adults. It also states that children within this beginning age range requirement are receiving the “appropriate dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine” and that the “Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5 through 11 years has the same active ingredients as the vaccine given to adults and adolescents.” The Mayo Clinic states that the only difference between the adult and pediatric Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is the dosage as well as the buffer. The pediatric version of the vaccine contains a different buffer, the same buffer used in other vaccinations approved by the FDA, assisting only in “keep[ing] the vaccine stable in refrigerated temperatures for longer.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), doses vary based on an individual’s age and weight on the day a vaccination is received. However, the CDC also states that adolescents twelve years or older are receiving the same dose amount of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine as adults. Johns Hopkins Medicine states that the Pfizer-BioNTech adult COVID-19 vaccine series, available to adolescents between ages twelve to seventeen, is a 30 mcg dose. In contrast, the Pfizer-BioNTech pediatric COVID-19 vaccine series is a 10mcg dose.

The KFF COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor revealed that when the vaccine became available to children ages five to eleven, only about three in ten parents were willing to get their child vaccinated right away. Parents are voicing their concern for their child’s safety and against any school vaccination mandates due to a lack of knowledge supporting the vaccine’s severe side effects and long-term effects. Two-thirds of those parents are worried about their child’s future fertility risking damage as a result of the vaccine. Disputes against the coronavirus vaccine for children are also taking into account the concerns to vaccination barriers in accordance with accessible information.

About Matthew Cambó

Matthew Cambó is a family law attorney in Florida who has been recognized by Best Lawyers in America 2022 due to his exceptional focus on serving clients in family law matters. For the past six years, he has been working as an associate attorney with Leinoff & Lemos, P.A. His focus areas are marital, and family law matters. In addition, Mr. Cambó is devoted to litigation, including divorce, child custody issues, relocation, alimony and child support matters, modification actions, business valuations, and paternity disputes.