Ray DeMonia’s family said they received calls from 43 hospitals in three states to get the 73-year-old boy to have a bed for a cardiac ICU. He later died at a Mississippi facility, 200 miles from his Alabama home. His relatives wrote in his wake “please get vaccinated … to free up resources for non-COVID-related emergencies.”
This occurs as COVID cases in children continue to increase, now forming one in four new infections.
Last week more than a quarter of a million cases were registered, which is the highest recorded.
President Biden outlined his plan to get private companies to vaccinate employees, but what about children, specifically those under 12?
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There are new questions about vaccines in young children, as experts tell parents to wait, for now.
The FDA issued a new warning on Monday telling parents not to give children under the age of 12 the COVID vaccine until the agency gives its approval, saying in part that “children are not young adults.”
The former FDA chief laid out his “best case” about when they will be available to children.
“You could have a vaccine available for kids ages 5 to 11 for Halloween, if all goes well,” said Scott Gottlieb, a former FDA commissioner.
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President Biden also ordered last week that companies with more than 100 employees be required to require vaccines or apply weekly tests.
The U.S. surgeon general defended the decision.
“It’s to help us overcome this, keep our kids in school, keep our economy moving forward and give us peace of mind,” Vivek Murthy said.
However, now Republican governors from at least 19 states are pledging to defend themselves.
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“This is an unprecedented assumption of the authority of the federal mandate that really disrupts and divides the country,” Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson said.
Vaccine warrants are already leading to resignations at a rural New York State hospital.
“The number of waivers received leaves us with no choice but to stop giving birth to babies,” said Gerald Cayer, general manager of Lewis County Health System.
Further south in New York City, starting Monday, anyone over the age of 12 must demonstrate vaccination for things like covered dining halls, gyms, or theaters.
More than 80,000 non-essential city employees are expected to return to work in New York City on Monday.
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