United States: Florida is highlighted as the only country that has not and will not order COVID-19 vaccines for children ages six months to 5 years old.
Florida chose not to place an order because the state officials say they do not recommend the shots for all young ones.
The parents who want to vaccinate their children will still be able to do so because the Department of Health is leaving it up to doctors and hospitals to order vaccines themselves.
Moreover, Gov. Ron DeSantis mentioned in the statement, when asked about the vaccines at a news conference in South Florida on Thursday, “That’s not something that we think is appropriate and so that’s not what we’re going to be utilizing our resources in that regard. The standard is: is this something safe and effective, and then very importantly, for recommendations, does the benefit outweigh the risk?”
According to the sources, a spokesperson for the Florida Department of Health highlighted, “The Florida Department of Health (Department) has made it clear to the federal government that states do not need to be involved in the convoluted vaccine distribution process, especially when the federal government has a track record of developing inconsistent & unsustainable COVID-19 policies.”
“It is also nothing to surprise we chose not to take part in the distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine when the Department does not recommend it for all children. Doctors can order vaccines if they are require, & there are currently no orders in the Department’s ordering system for the COVID-19 vaccine for this age group.”
Furthermore, State officials cited, based on current data, that healthy children between 5 and 17 may not benefit from the vaccine but say children with underlying conditions should consider the shots.
