Oregon’s top health official effectively conceded some defeat in the state’s COVID-19 communication war, telling lawmakers Friday that misinformation at least partially explains why only about 41% of eligible children under 12 have been fully or partially vaccinated against the coronavirus.
“I think this is a mix of parental concern, a mix of the understanding that people have of whether kids are at risk — which doesn’t really speak to the risk of transmission,” Oregon Health Authority Director Patrick Allen told lawmakers in a pandemic update. “And, frankly, the misinformation winning to a degree.”
Children 5 to 11 years old in Oregon have the lowest vaccination rates of any age group. More than 70% of children 12 to 17 and 72% of 18- and 19-year-olds are fully or partially vaccinated against COVID-19, state data show.
The director said he doesn’t expect to see “massive and persistent” demand for vaccines when children 6 months to 4 years old are approved for shots, which President Joe Biden’s administration has said could be approved as early as June 21.
Children are generally at lower risk of severe disease or death than adults, but can still have severe illness and can contribute to the spread of disease.
Vaccine hesitancy does not stop at parents of small children, Allen indicated in his virtual presentation to the House Interim Committee on COVID-19 Response. Almost 18 months since vaccines first became available, few if any Oregonians remain who are unsure about whether they want to get a shot, Allen said.
“We’re less and less successful at convincing people to get vaccinated,” Allen said. “We’re really down to people who have gotten vaccinated or people who have decided they’re not going to get vaccinated.”
In May, about 370 people got a first COVID-19 dose each day, on average, the lowest daily average in any four-week period since vaccines became available.
Oregon Health & Science University analyst Peter Graven, who has worked closely with Allen’s agency to forecast and announce surges in infections, later was asked to explain his and the state’s continued push for vaccines.
“I think there’s a lot of people who are confused about why are we still promoting vaccines if they don’t prevent infections, and people aren’t dying as a result of the infection at the rates that we saw previously,” said Rep. Maxine Dexter, D-Portland, who is a doctor and supports COVID-19 vaccines.
Graven acknowledged it is difficult, if not impossible, to forever prevent an infection.
“If you’re going to go and eventually get it, you want weighted dice in your favor,” Graven said, referring to the largely better outcomes for vaccinated people who get COVID-19 compared to those who aren’t vaccinated. “And that weighted dice is definitely vaccination.”
More than half of infections reported in April were among the vaccinated, according to the state’s most recent report on breakthrough cases. But unvaccinated or partially vaccinated Oregonians account for about three quarters of all COVID-19 deaths since the pandemic began.
— Fedor Zarkhin
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June 04, 2022 at 05:55AM
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‘Misinformation’ partially driving low COVID-19 vaccination rates for children, state official says - OregonLive
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