December 03, 2021
Jill Biden visited the vaccination clinic at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia on Friday to encourage parents to get their young children inoculated against COVID-19
Pfizer vaccine was approved for 5-to 11-year-olds by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration last month. The shot is a lower dose administered with a smaller needle compared to the Pfizer vaccine given to adults.
On Thursday, President Joe Biden implored parents to get their children vaccinated as a way to keep the nation's public schools open through the holiday season and the rest of the winter, when caseloads are expected to rise.
Although the president said 20 million-plus children, including 4 million between the ages of 5 and 11, have been vaccinated so far, the rate at which shots are being given has declined recently. A poll from the Washington Post and ABC News last month found that 52% of parents surveyed were not confident in the safety or efficacy of vaccines for children.
As of Friday, 13,332 children in Philly, ages 5 to 11, had received at least one dose of the vaccine according to the city's portal – that accounts for 11.5% city children within that age range. That rate is lower in Black (5.2%) and Hispanic (7.5%) communities in Philadelphia.
"I'm so glad you came today to get your shot!" Jill Biden said to mother whose two daughters had received their COVID-19 vaccinations in a video tweeted by an Inquirer reporter. "It was easy, right? And now it’s going to protect you."
Gov. Tom Wolf was at CHOP, as well. He told CBS3 the state is doing "pretty well" when it comes to pediatric vaccines.
Jill Biden's brief stop in Philadelphia came before she flew to Oklahoma. There, she will visit the Cherokee Immersion School on Cherokee nation's reservation with U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland to discuss the importance of preserving native languages.
