Webinar Helps CBOs Prepare for Anticipated COVID Vaccine Rollout for Kids

The CDC Foundation partnered with the Vaccine Equity Cooperative last week on a timely webinar for community-based organizations (CBOs) about the anticipated COVID-19 vaccine rollout for children ages five to 11. An FDA advisory committee plans to meet Oct. 26 to discuss emergency authorization for Pfizer/BioNTech’s vaccine for this younger age group. If approved, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP)—currently scheduled to meet Nov. 2 and 3—will offer its own recommendations to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and a rollout could soon follow, before the end of the year. The webinar was aimed at preparing CBOs to share trusted information with their communities and support equitable access to the estimated 28 million children who would become eligible for a pediatric dose of the vaccine.

During the 90-minute webinar, presenters from CDC, the CDC Foundation, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the School-Based Health Alliance, Día de la Mujer Latina, Inc., and others outlined key strategies for CBOs to consider as they gear up for the child vaccination effort.

Among the key takeaways:

• The more local the messengers, the more persuasive the message; make sure trusted messengers within the community have and understand the latest science-based information and guidance on vaccine safety and efficacy.
• Always encourage families to discuss their vaccination decision with their pediatrician/ health providers.
• Present and share information at a level that unique populations can understand; have images, not just text, and verify that translations are accurate and culturally-relevant.
• Stress that pediatric vaccinations are part of the overall strategy to allow kids to be back at school safely; plus, it’s important that kids catch up on all their routine childhood vaccinations, in addition to getting the COVID vaccine.
• Encourage a “no wrong door” approach; every child is unique, and solutions must be tailored to overcome racial, ethnic, socio-economic and other barriers.
• Collaborate and coordinate with partners in the public and private sectors, including businesses, community health workers/promotores, local health departments, pediatric practices, volunteers, pharmacies and schools to help ensure quick and equitable access to—and administration of—the vaccine. The health and safety of our kids and communities depend on it as we continue to fight this deadly pandemic.

For more, we invite you to watch the full webinar, “Planning for the Child Vaccine Rollout: Equitable Approaches and Best Practices.”

This webinar was the seventh in a series of CDC Foundation webinars for CBOs and their partners. They are all archived on our CBO Resource Page.

For additional information, email the CBO capacity-building assistance team at capacitybuilding@cdcfoundation.org.

This blog post is supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award totaling $68,939,536 with 100 percent funded by CDC/HHS. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement by, CDC/HHS or the U.S. Government.