B.C. health officials are urging families to make sure their school-age children are vaccinated against COVID – but about a third of New Westminster families haven't heeded the call.
Vaccination data from the B.C. Centre for Disease Control shows that, as of Feb. 15, 66% of children aged five to 11 in New Westminster had received their first dose of Pfizer pediatric vaccine. That's up just a sliver over 65% last week.
Second-dose rates, however, are finally picking up steam. Last week, just 10% of New West kids had received their second dose. This week, the city has vaulted into the top spot in the Fraser Health region (the territory from Burnaby to Hope and surrounding areas) with a 22% second-dose vaccination rate.
That second-dose rate, in fact, puts New Westminster amongst the B.C. leaders for pediatric immunization, ranking 11th among local health areas in B.C. (See list below.)
The highest rates of pediatric vaccination can be found in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, with a 48% second-dose rate in the Central Coast, 39% in both Vancouver Midtown and North Vancouver, and 35% in Vancouver Westside.
Dr. Bonnie Henry warns about 'long COVID' in children
At the province's Feb. 15 COVID-19 briefing, provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry urged families to ensure their five-to-11-year-old children are vaccinated.
The 5-11 vaccine started rolling out Nov. 29 for first doses and Jan. 24 for second doses, but take-up hasn't been as high as health officials wanted. As of Feb. 15, 55% of children in B.C. had their first dose and 17% had their second dose.
"This is not an innocuous virus," Henry said.
She warned about the unknowns surrounding long COVID in children.
“We still don’t have a lot of insight into the long-term impacts on younger children from infection, even though it does, thankfully, seem to be relatively mild in younger kids,” Henry said. “We still don’t have a good understanding of children and longer-term impacts of this virus and infections in children, so that’s an important thing we’re still trying to get information about. We’ll need to monitor this over the long haul.”
Henry urged any parents who are still hesitating about getting their children vaccinated to talk to a health-care professional about the benefits and safety of the pediatric vaccine.
“It is important. We do know that vaccination is safe in that age group. The pediatric formulation is working well,” she said.
Vaccination is not yet available for children under five years old.
How to get your child vaccinated in B.C.
In order to be vaccinated, five-to-11-year-olds must first be registered in B.C.'s Get Vaccinated system, after which time an invitation will be sent (by text or email) to book an appointment.
You can find all the information online at B.C.'s pediatric vaccine page, or call the central vaccination line at 1-833-838-2323.
Who's vaccinating their kids in B.C.?
Here are the top areas for pediatric immunization, based on second doses as of Feb. 15:
Central Coast: 48%
Vancouver Midtown: 39%
North Vancouver: 39%
Vancouver Westside: 35%
Vancouver City Centre: 31%
West Vancouver/Bowen Island: 31%
Vancouver Centre North: 31%
Vancouver Northeast: 27%
Greater Victoria: 25%
Vancouver South: 23%
New Westminster: 22%
Richmond: 22%
Saanich Peninsula: 22%
Sunshine Coast: 22%
Follow Julie MacLellan on Twitter @juliemaclellan.
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