Get the kids vaccines?

In My Humble Opinion
1

So the CDC says here that healthy children over the age of 2 shouldn’t get vaccinated this year due to the shortage. I have two kids, aged 2 and 4.

Their pediatrician called to tell us they ordered their vaccine from the company that didn’t get shut down and that we should bring the girls in on Friday for their shots.

I am in a moral quandry. Is it wrong of me to have my kids vaccinated at the expense of someone arguably more in need?

MHO is that I won’t feel too bad about getting the 2 yo her shot since she only is above the “cutoff” by a couple of months. But I don’t know. Odds are if we don’t use the shots, the extra shot won’t go to some asthmatic elderly person but to some other upper middle class suburbanite later next week.

2

Um…I don’ treally have a say in this matter since I have no kids.

But, by all means, get them the vaccines if your company can do it. There may be some other time when you have to go without.

Besides, they’re your kids. They deserve the best of what you can give them. :smiley:

3

It seems to me that the office would know about high risk patients under their care. Perhaps, since they called you in, they’ve already accounted for those patients? They probably wouldn’t send the vaccine to another office, so, I’d go ahead and get them the vaccine while you have the opportunity.

4

Vaccines have some contravercy and some don’t want to have their offspring vaccinated for fear of autizm or other disorders - this is what I though you post was about.

But since it is not and you are worried about others, there is an effect, I forgot the name, but basically it means that a more needey person who does not get vaccinated has protection if all his piers are vaccinated, as he can’t get the ailment from people who can’t get the thing in the 1st place.

So if you are concerned about the needy, I would say getting vaccinated would be the best you could do for them.

5

Your job as a parent is to protect your children. The medical community will sort out who should be immunized.
Here, if this helps, I’m in a high risk group. (asthma) I’m not getting a flu shot this year, so you may have mine. :slight_smile:

6

You’re thinking of a herd immunity. And yes, it can indeed work, but enough of the population has to have an immunity/near immunity and it can’t be the type of disease where it is possible to be a carrier without getting sick.

7

I agree with this. Obviously, you shouldn’t take it to excess, but the flu poses a real threat to children that age.

8

If your children don’t get the flu, they can’t spread the flu.