New York City vaccination rates among children have dramatically fallen during the coronavirus pandemic.
Mayor Bill de Blasio told reporters during a press conference on Wednesday that the number of administered vaccines is down 63 percent compared to this time last year.
Immunizations overall have fallen by about two-thirds from this time in 2019. Among children two years old and younger, they have decreased by 42 percent and in children older than age two, vaccinations are down 91 percent.
Youngsters haven’t been getting their typical shots against diseases such as measles and chickenpox because parents have feared their children might get coronavirus during a doctor’s visit.
In addition, fewer physicians’ offices are open to even administer the inoculations.
Vaccinations among children younger than age two have decreased by 42% and have fallen by 91% among children older than two years older, Mayor de Blasio revealed
The number of doses has decreased by 63% from almost 400,000 at this time last year to 150,000 over a six-week period this year (file image)
Over a six-week period during this time last year, doctors administered almost 400,000 vaccine doses.
By comparison, over the six-week period this year, fewer than 150,000 doses have been administered.
Dr Hanan Tanuos, director of primary care and an associate professor of pediatrics at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School told DailyMail.com the reason for this drop is likely two-fold.
‘I think part of it of course is the parents are afraid to bring their children out and I think the other part is that the availability of doctors is limited,’ she said.
The mayor stressed a child contacting an illness that could have prevented in addition to coronavirus could create a very dangerous situation.
‘The vaccines that, for example, prevent respiratory illnesses like pneumonia are important any time,’ de Blasio said.
‘A child who gets one of these diseases is likely to need to be hospitalized and they’re likely to be more susceptible to contracting COVID.’
De Blasio said this also increases the risk of children falling ill with ‘Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children.’
This is the rare inflammatory condition that has been associated with COVID-19 and has affected at least 145 children in the city.
He added that vaccines are not just important for children with normal immune system but also for those who are immunocompromised and therefore, more vulnerable to catching childhood diseases and coronavirus.
Therefore, increasing immunization rates will not only protect kids but communities as a whole.
Officials from the city’s health department stressed that there is no link between jabs and coronavirus.
‘We’re learning more and more about how COVID-19 manifests in children,’ Dr Oxiris Barbot, commissioner of the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, said during the press conference.
‘That being said, there is no indication that there is any correlation with vaccination status in children.’
To help drive vaccinations up, the city will offer free vaccinations – not for COVID-19 – at more than 1,000 New York City facilities and at all Health and Human community health clinics.
‘The bottom line to all parents, all family members out there: get your child vaccinated,’ de Blasio said.
It comes on the heels of a recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that found similar alarming declines.
Vaccination rates for children aged five months and younger in Michigan in May fell to 49.7 percent.
By comparison, about two-thirds of children in that age bracket were given jabs in May 2016.
Public health officials have warned for years that vaccines not only protect individuals but the community as a whole in what is known as ‘herd immunity’.
This occurs when the vast majority of a community – between 80 and 95 percent – becomes immune so that, if a disease is introduced, it is unable to spread.
Therefore, those who are unable to be vaccinated, including the ill, very young and very old, are protected.
Now, health authorities are worried that falling rates might destroy the herd immunity that had bee built up against certain diseases.
‘If this goes on for long enough and enough children don’t get vaccinated, then we might see small outbreaks of some of these diseases, some more easily than others,’ Dr Joseph Schwab, an associate professor of pediatrics at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, told DailyMail.com.
He said one disease he is concerned about is pertussis, more commonly known as whooping cough.
‘Pertussis is one I’m concerned about because that’s something that passes on from older people to the kids,’ he said.
‘[Parents] shouldn’t let fear, because of the pandemic, prevent them from getting the care.’
