And there were those sadistic parents, I was sure, whispering about how it could last until the end of the school year.
Nobody knew at that time when schools were going to reopen, and here’s a truth that I don’t want to admit – nobody knows now.
Like so many parents, I am desperate for some clarity. I want to hope. I also want to plan.
Should we budget for extra childcare next year if there is no on-site school? Or should we find ways to reduce the work? Should we apply for summer camps? So, the hardest part, what we tell our kids when they look us in the eye and ask when, oh, when they can have birthday parties and football games and sleep over at someone’s house and the countless other rites of passage being denied? How much longer do we have to say no?
Parents, caregivers, children: We just don’t know.
High case rates, new variants, teacher union negotiations and elaborate and expensive protocols for reopening safe schools complicate our children’s return to pre-pandemic life.
Experts agree that a widely available pediatric vaccine would simplify the process, but we don’t know when we can wait and whether it is necessary for a safe return.
The state of research on children
Now that Covid-19 vaccines are proven to be safe and effective in adults, pharmaceutical companies have started to study these same vaccines in children. Researchers are currently focused on teenagers and pre-teens with the intention of reaching younger children over time, as safety in older children is proven in clinical trials.
“From an ethical point of view, you do not want to start studying a drug with vulnerable populations, such as children and pregnant women, until you have proven its safety and effectiveness in the adult population,” explained Dr. Larry Kociolek, a specialist in infectious diseases. pediatric director of prevention and infection control at the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago.
Children over 16 have been included in tests with adults, and the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine is now approved for those over 16. (The Modern vaccine is approved for adults 18 and older.) Their vaccinations are a matter of availability of the vaccine – which is yet another point of uncertainty.
Currently, children aged 12 to 17 are being studied, although the timing of when these results may come out is still unclear. Children under the age of 12 still need to be studied, but things are progressing rapidly.
“No study in the United States that has been opened falls in these age groups, and the exact timeline for starting studies in younger children is not available,” said Dr. Evan Anderson, professor of pediatrics at Emory University and a physician at Children’s Healthcare in Atlanta.
Older teenagers can be vaccinated for fall
If you have a 16-year-old child at home, there is a good chance he will be vaccinated in time for the new school year this fall, experts say. But it is increasingly doubtful that vaccination – and the second follow-up injection – will happen in time for summer camp.
Those aged 12 and over are next in line and have a good chance of seeing a vaccine in time for the next school year, which would increase the likelihood of their returning to school.
Do you have children aged 12 or under? Don’t count on a vaccine in time for the fall.
“It is possible that this age group will be eligible as early as late summer or early fall, but that can be optimistic. But even if it is, it will take several months or more to widely distribute the vaccine,” said Kociolek.
Anderson believes it is still possible to get a vaccine for elementary school children in time for the next school year, “but that window is closing fast.”
Herd immunity and school reopening
Well. Don’t wait any longer with vaccines for children under 12 in time for the next school year. But what impact does this have on this age group, possibly back to school next year?
Widespread vaccination and collective immunity would eliminate much of the risk, even if schools cannot follow these protocols. Is adult vaccination sufficient to obtain immunity and minimize risks? Or is it not safe until children are also vaccinated?
On this, the experts are divided.
A widely distributed pediatric vaccine should be a priority, Anderson believes.
“To get out of the pandemic mode completely, we need to ensure that our children can receive a vaccine and receive the vaccine,” he explained. “Otherwise, you will have a continuous pool of children susceptible to Covid-19. We are likely to see sustained transmission between young children and the virus jumping from this group to other populations or unvaccinated individuals.”
He fears that children may give immunocompromised adults who may not respond to the vaccine. He also worries about the children getting sick; although Covid-19 is much less dangerous for children, it is not without risks. The number of children who died from Covid-19 last year was similar to a particularly fatal flu season. “We vaccinated them against the flu,” he said.
Will vaccinated adults reduce children’s risk?
Other experts want to emphasize that the likelihood of children receiving Covid-19 will decrease considerably when adults are vaccinated.
“With regard to Covid-19 in children, the greatest risk of exposure for children comes from those who care for them at home,” explained Kociolek. “We know that if we vaccinate parents against pertussis (whooping cough), for example, this can prevent babies. We call this cocooning, and it is a way to protect children by creating a web of immunity ”.
If you take into account all the people who have already contracted the coronavirus and combine that factor with those who are likely to receive the vaccine in the next six months, it seems likely that we will achieve collective immunity without a pediatric vaccine, said Dr. Paul Offit, director of Vaccine Education Center and professor of pediatrics in the infectious disease division of Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
“You probably don’t need to vaccinate children to prevent it from spreading,” he said.
For now, educators are not sure. Some already ask for the vaccination of teachers and students before returning to work. Many others are waiting to follow the lead of scientists and public health officials.
Becky Pringle, president of the National Education Association, said that it is possible that a safe reopening for everyone involves a vaccine for children “, but we are not yet aware of that. I am a science teacher, so I know we have to hear the professionals about it. No we are making no statement yet. “
Living with uncertainties
“What I’m saying (at the end of January) may not be accurate very soon, considering how fast this is happening,” said Kociolek. This is a sentiment repeated by many of his fellow doctors. There are so many unknowns, so many variables, and they are all subject to change. Which brings us back to more uncertainty.
There is some relief in accepting uncertainty and ending speculation. He reminds us to make only plans that can be easily broken and to avoid having anything that will break our children’s hearts if it has to be canceled.
I hesitate to suggest that this is an opportunity to teach children about uncertainty, as I’m not sure if they need more lessons from this furshlugginer pandemic (Yiddish for “piece of trash”), as my firstborn now refers to it. At this point, the children are probably all already learned.
Children appreciate honesty, however. Tell older children that you don’t know if they are going back to school this spring. If they are younger, say that you don’t know if they are going to camp or go back to school next fall.
Tell them that many good, hard-working people are doing what they can to make it happen as quickly as possible. Will they succeed? Eventually, yes. We just don’t know when.
Elissa Strauss she is a regular contributor to CNN, where she writes about the politics and culture of parenting.