Carla O'Day is a Sparks resident who is jumping at the chance to get her son, Walter, vaccinated against COVID-19. The three-year-old barely flinched when he got his first dose of the Pfizer vaccine.
"I was very surprised," O'Day said. "I thought he would cry but he did pretty well."
May says she is relieved that the vaccine is available for children between the ages of six months and four years. She has been waiting for this day since the vaccines rolled out for adults in December of 2020. She says Walter is safer because of it. He is the first Washoe County resident in this age range to get the vaccine.
"There are a lot of people out there who say that children are at low risk but low risk does not mean no risk," O'Day said.
Health officials are encouraging all parents to get their kids vaccinated. 202 children, younger than the age of five, have died from COVID-19 in the United States since January, 2020. Many more have been hospitalized. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says more kids between the age of six months and four years were hospitalized with COVID-19 than those aged five to 17 during the Omicron surge.
"CDC data shows that during Omicron, the most severe hospital visits for kids were those that were aged six months to four years," Kevin Dick, Washoe County Health District Officer said.
Dick says one of the possible reasons for that is because so many more older kids are vaccinated. Until now, anyone under the age of five was vulnerable to contracting the virus.
"It's incredibly important to give children an extra layer of protection from COVID-19 and take advantage of the vaccine that's now available for the six month-and-older age group," Dick said.
Laurel May is getting her daughter, Loki, vaccinated. She is one-and-half years old.
"Myself and my husband are vaccinated, my son is vaccinated and boosted," May said. "She was kind of the last in the group, we were waiting for."
The vaccines have undergone a rigorous testing process and she trusts that the shots are safe.
"If I can prevent it from being even close to her being hospitalized, I want to prevent as much as possible," May said. "It's not just about us. It's about the others around us, as well.
Washoe County remains in the medium range for community spread. The seven-day rolling average is 171 daily new cases. That is lower than it was during the previous week at 215 daily new cases. Six residents have died in the month of June from COVID-related illnesses. The number of hospitalized COVID patients is increasing but it is still much lower than it was during other surges. Dick says hospital capacity is still in good shape. The county's staffed hospital beds are at 83 percent of capacity.
