On Monday, Gov. Ron DeSantis sat at a table in front of a backdrop of Art Deco buildings along Miami Beach's Ocean Drive. He was there to host a 90-minute discussion to slam mitigation measures, like mask mandates and lockdowns, that were designed to slow the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19. .
At the start of the discussion, titled "The Curtain Close on COVID Theater," DeSantis praised the state's surgeon general, Dr. Joseph Ladapo, for his controversial approach to handling the pandemic in Florida. More than 70,000 peoplein thestatehave died from COVID-19 so far.
"If CNN’s attacking him I know he’s doing the right thing," DeSantis said. "I can just use that as my barometer."
During the last couple of minutes of the discussion, Ladapo announced that the Department of Health's new policy is "to officially recommend against the COVID-19 vaccines for healthy children."
He gave no other specifics, but the following day shared a link via Twitter to a document that lists only children age 5 to 17 with an underlying condition as good candidates for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.
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The majority of pediatricians, and agencies like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization, urge parents and guardians to vaccinate their children to protect them against COVID-19.
That includes Dr. Mobeen Rathore, chair of the Florida Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Emerging Infections Task Force. Rathore told WLRN that vaccines have long protected children against diseases, like polio and whooping cough, even if recommended dosages change.
"We started with one dose of measles, now we give two doses of measles [vaccines]. With chicken pox we started with one dose of chicken pox; now we give two," Rathore said. "We learn, and if we just keep our north star as evidence and science, that’s all we ask."
The Florida Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (FCAAP) represents more than 2,500 pediatricians across the state.
"The COVID-19 vaccine is our best hope for ending the pandemic,” wrote FCAAP president Dr. Lisa Gwynn, in a statement emailed to reporters. "The Surgeon General’s comments today misrepresent the benefits of the vaccine, which has been proven to prevent serious illness, hospitalizations and long-term symptoms from COVID-19 in children and adolescents, including those who are otherwise healthy. The evidence is clear that when people are vaccinated, they are significantly less likely to get very sick and need hospital care."
Dr. Tina Carroll-Scott, the medical director of the South Miami Children's Clinic, worries that the surgeon general’s statements will make it even harder to convince patients and their families to get the shot.
“I believe this decision by the governor and the Florida surgeon general was misguided and will create even more fear and mistrust with vaccine-hesitant parents. Especially in communities of color, like where I work, which have been disproportionately affected by this virus with hospitalizations and death,” Carroll-Scott said.
Even as case counts drop across the country and schools and businesses lift mask mandates and loosen protocols, Carroll-Scott doesn't recommend easing vaccination efforts at this time. A wider uptake of the shots is a key step to protecting kids and keeping schools open, she said.
“There’s a randomness and an unpredictability to this virus. Where, when we think we’ve gotten it figured out, it does something completely different that we didn’t expect,” Carroll-Scott added. “We need to always be 10 steps ahead and proactive instead of reactive.”
She continues to see misinformation and vaccine hesitancy as barriers to the rollout of the life-saving vaccines. According to the CDC, as of March 9, just 24 percent of Florida kids ages 5 to 11 have gotten their first shot.
While children are generally less likely to get severely ill, the virus remains a threat to healthy kids as well as those with underlying conditions.
“It shouldn't take another variant that affects healthy children in greater numbers and more severely to decide that getting vaccinated is a good idea,” Carroll-Scott said.
