KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Children from 5 years old to 11 years old are now eligible to get vaccinated for COVID-19. A new survey from the Kaiser Family Foundations reported that a majority of parents want to wait rather than get their child vaccinated immediately.
They said 30 percent of parents say they won’t vaccinate their kids. Another 33 percent said they would wait and see and 27 percent said they planned to vaccinate their children right away.
For one Knoxville family, the vaccine comes with some long-anticipated perks. Sammy Moore, 11, was first in line to get his shot. Sammy's dad, Eric, said the nurse told his son he was the first in his age group to get vaccinated at their clinic.
"My wife and I would not have put our children in harm’s way. In fact, we feel confident that getting the vaccination means taking them out of harm’s way," he said.
"When I heard I was going to be the first person ever to get it I was like 'how is this possible?" Sammy said. "Take the thing you want most in the world and times it by 100. Like that's how I felt."
He may not be the first in the world, but Sammy is still a trailblazer in Knoxville. He said he was mostly excited because the vaccination would help make sure he wouldn't have to stay at home as he did during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
"We really just felt super excited to have the opportunity to get them vaccinated to protect them and to protect others that we're in contact with," Eric said.
Finally being able to play with other kids on the playground, he said he’s on top of the world. Eric and his wife had originally decided to home school for their children's safety, he said.
"That had forced us in the position of having to homeschool. But now, we've been able to vaccinate our children and take safety into our own hands. So now we feel that we can send them back," Eric said.
This means Sammy and his siblings will be back in school after Christmas.
"As soon as I knew I was getting the vaccine I felt like I was exploding basically like of excitement. It was just the best day ever!” Sammy said.
For parents worried about side effects, doctors say it's important to understand that COVID-19 is a bigger risk to children’s health than any side effect from the vaccine. They say the long-term effects of COVID-19 can impact children more than any discomfort the vaccine can cause.