KANSAS CITY, Mo. — With the Kansas City area and country navigating the current delta variant-driven surge of the COVID-19 pandemic, KSHB 41 News spoke to a prominent pediatric physician for insight on students and teachers' return to school this fall.
Dr. Peter Hotez, Baylor College of Medicine professor of pediatrics and the Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development co-director, said young people are bearing the brunt of the pandemic right now, and everyone needs to take measures to protect them.
"I think kids are just getting swept up in this firestorm because so many people are unvaccinated in our parts of the country," Hotez told KSHB 41 News reporter Dan Cohen. "So you're going to see a lot more pediatric hospitalizations and ICU and pediatric ICU admissions because of it, and that's all the more reason why we have to really double down on mask and vaccine mandates."
Without the requirements, Hotez said districts risk a return to virtual learning.
"Nobody likes it but you know, if you're going to be serious about in-person classes, you've got to put those policies in place, otherwise what's going to happen is so many schools are going to have breakout COVID infections that they're going to go back to virtual learning," Hotez said,.
With the Biden administration recommending third shots of the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines eight months after recipients' second dose, Hotez said he hopes that will eliminate the need for an annual shot.
"I think with that third immunization, you're going to get very robust, long-lasting protection, and I think that could be it so it's not one and done or two and done, but three and done and and we'll see how it goes. I don't necessarily see the need for annual immunizations or boosters," he said.
Hotez is also optimistic about future approval for vaccines in children younger than 12 who are not currently eligible.
"I'm pretty confident that that's going to go forward, what the uptake is another matter," he said. "If you look in terms of 12 to 17 year old's, we're doing pretty well in the Northeast, but in the South, fewer than 25% of the 12 to 17 year old's are vaccinated. What's it going to be like for little kids? It's going to emphasize that North, South split even more."
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