Thread by @kristenmag

WA state is weighing whether to include covid vaccine as a requirement for school entry. As part of this process, a BOH Technical Advisory Group has been tasked with evaluating this vaccine against 9 criteria. Here I’ve highlighted each criteria, along with key observations. 🧵

CRITERIA 1: ACIP Recommendation

ACIP has recommended vaccinating school-aged children. However, it should be emphasized that during this discussion with ACIP the FDA specifically warned AGAINST MANDATING this vaccine in 5-11 year olds.

CRITERIA 2: Vaccine Effectiveness

Question is how well the “vaccine prevents individuals from contracting the disease”. With undeniable spread of Omicron among fully vax/boosted, it’s fair to demand more compelling evidence that vax in school kids significantly prevents spread.

CRITERIA 3: Cost Effective

A parent may need to stay home to care for a child with minor vax side effects. In the context of a non-sterilizing vaccine with boosters annually or more often, the potential loss of wages could add up significantly. These costs are hard to quantify.

CRITERIA 4: Vaccine Safety

The FDA has stated that the covid vaccine is safe for children. It should be noted that other countries limit these vaccines to only children at high risk, partly due to concerns about potential risks, and overall risk/benefit assessments.

CRITERIA 5: Prevent Severe Outcomes

Severe outcomes from covid are extremely rare in school-age children even without vaccine. The FDA vaccine trial in this age group was too small to prove a significant reduction of this already low occurrence.

CRITERIA 6: Reduce Transmission in Schools

The CDC has stated covid vaccine does not prevent transmission. With the emergence of Omicron it’s unclear how well vax may reduce infection/transmission, and whether this reduction is enough to compel mandatory use in school children.

CRITERIA 7: Public Acceptance

Currently only 25% of 5-11 year olds in WA are fully vaccinated. It’s clear there is significant hesitancy among parents. Mandating vaccines in schools would be highly divisive. If forced, many students would likely disenroll from public education.

CRITERIA 8: Administrative Burdens

Monitoring vaccine compliance is already a huge burden for school officials. Tracking vaccine records for a seasonal respiratory virus that may require frequent boosters w/multiple individualized schedules would be an administrative nightmare.

CRITERIA 9: Parent Burdens

Aside from transportation and time, we should also consider burdens of exemptions. How might exempt students be excluded from attending school? Do those exclusions fall disproportionately on certain demographics? What if parents can’t afford childcare?

SOURCE: Info on the WA BOH decision-making process related to requiring vaccines for school entry per WAC 246-105-030 and associated TAG criteria can be found here: sboh.wa.gov/Portals/7/Doc/…