The majority of Iowa children ages 5 to 11 have not been vaccinated against COVID-19 despite being eligible. | Unsplash/CDC
The majority of Iowa children ages 5 to 11 have not been vaccinated against COVID-19 despite being eligible. | Unsplash/CDC
Iowa doctors are urging parents to get their children vaccinated against COVID-19.
KCCI News reported that the majority of children ages 5 to 11 have not been vaccinated against COVID-19 despite being eligible.
As of Dec. 29, only 14% of children ages 5 to 11 are fully vaccinated, according to KCCI News. The number of COVID-19 cases is on the rise with the state averaging around 1,566 cases per day which is up from approximately 1,300 cases the week prior. Most hospitalizations have been among the unvaccinated population.
"Iowans over the age of 5 are eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine," the Iowa Department of Public Health wrote in a Dec. 23 Twitter post. "Vaccines are a safe and effective way to prevent serious illness, hospitalization and death from COVID-19. If you have questions about the vaccine, talk with your healthcare provider."
Dr. Amy Shriver said that hospitals are experiencing a “twindemic,” a surge of mostly young patients with COVID-19 or the flu.
"It means that most likely we'll be seeing shortages of hospital beds for kids, we'll be seeing shortages of safety equipment, we'll be seeing shortages of tests," Shriver told KCCI News.
Iowa has the ninth highest seven-day death rate in the nation with 3.8 deaths per 100,000 people, according to date from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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