Some NY counties lagging behind in COVID-19 vaccinations for ages 5 to 11. Here’s where

COVID-19 vaccinations among New Yorkers ages 5 to 11 have slowed recently and some counties are lagging far behind the statewide rate.

About 275,000 children, or 18%, of New Yorkers in the 5-11 age group have received their first dose, but nearly 40 of the 62 counties statewide fell below that rate, state data on Friday showed.

Many of the 15 lowest pediatric vaccination rates — 10% and below — were reported in rural counties across large swaths of upstate, though Rockland County, Orange County, the Bronx and Staten Island also fell into the group.

Most counties with low child-vaccination numbers have also lagged in vaccinating adolescents and adults, leaving them more vulnerable to surging COVID-19 cases and the potentially highly contagious omicron variant detected Thursday in New York City.

Fulton County in the Mohawk Valley, for example, had the lowest pediatric vaccination rate at about 6%, while just 60% of its population ages 18 and above has received at least one dose, among the lowest rates statewide.

Struggles in getting children vaccinated are unfolding despite a growing number of vaccine clinics statewide targeting the age group, which is receiving Pfizer-BioNtech’s COVID-19 vaccine. It was granted emergency use authorization by federal regulators on Nov. 2.

Last month, parents who anxiously awaited the approval rushed to get children vaccinated in the early weeks, but demand has waned recently, said Dr. Joseph Sellers, president of the Medical Society of the State of New York.

Now, outreach by government and doctors seeks to convince parents to get children vaccinated against COVID-19 as New York enters another uncertain pandemic winter.

“There is a group of parents who don’t want themselves vaccinated and don’t want to vaccinate their children, and those are very difficult conversations,” said Sellers, a pediatrician and internal medicine specialist.

“Then, there is a group in the middle that are not sure and need some reassurance, and that’s where we as medical professionals are putting our efforts,” he added.

Gov. Kathy Hochul last week also announced eight new pop-up vaccine sites opened statewide for ages 5 and above, joining the 211 other locations in the state’s “VaxtoSchool” program vaccinating school-age kids.

“The best tool we have to keep our kids, families, and schools safe is ensuring New York's students are fully vaccinated,” Hochul said in a statement.

Nationally, more than 4.3 million children ages 5-11 have received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.

That figure reflects about 15% of the age group in the U.S., with state pediatric vaccination rates varying widely from 42% in Vermont to 4% in many other states, the group reported.

How New York is vaccinating ages 5-11

In New York, strategy for vaccinating the 5-11 age group, in many communities, initially focused on getting doses to medical providers. Some clinics held at schools also vaccinated thousands of kids, as appointments booked up in a matter of hours.

In Rockland County, for example, the initial 850 pediatric doses sent to county health officials were redistributed to doctors, pharmacies and other health providers, county Health Commissioner Dr. Patricia Schnabel Ruppert said.

More: New York announces five cases of omicron variant. What to know

She noted “many parents were choosing to visit the family physicians and pediatricians they know and trust to vaccinate their children.” But two county-run vaccine clinics for ages 5-11 also administered 99 shots, and three other clinics are scheduled this month for the age group, she added in a statement about the issue.

Still, Rockland had vaccinated just 8% of its kids ages 5-11, less than half the statewide rate of 18%, state data on Friday show.

Ruppert could not provide specifics about why Rockland is lagging the statewide 5-11 group average, noting county health officials have administered 53,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses overall at clinic spaces, houses of worship, community centers and large private businesses.

“We will continue to provide access and availability to these safe and effective vaccines,” she said, noting clinics are held in diverse communities of Pomona and Spring Valley, as well as the Palisades Center Mall in West Nyack.

Meanwhile, state officials in June noted some of the lowest vaccination rates in New York ZIP codes included two Orthodox Jewish communities in Rockland and Orange counties.

At the time, religious leaders and local officials criticized former Gov. Andrew Cuomo for singling out the religious groups, citing the high numbers of young children in the communities who were ineligible for shots at the time.

A month into the pediatric vaccination push, Rockland and Orange counties had vaccinated 8% and 7% of their respective residents in the 5-11 age group, despite outreach from health and religious leaders.

But it is difficult to determine exactly where shots are lowest because age specific ZIP-code level data is unavailable.

Local leaders have said COVID-19 vaccine outreach efforts have faced similar challenges that hindered a measles vaccination push in Rockland and Orange counties in 2019, following a high-profile outbreak of the disease among unvaccinated Hasidic and Orthodox Jewish enclaves.

Those challenges include COVID-19 vaccine misinformation campaigns that tap into the community newsletters, social media groups and Whatsapp messaging platforms used by Orthodox Jewish, including one effort to mislead women about unproven fertility risks from the vaccines.

How one NY pediatrician promotes COVID vaccines to parents

Sellers, whose pediatric work spans Otsego and Schoharie counties, described talking to parents who are reluctant to vaccinate their kids against COVID-19 as a lesson in understanding and persistence.

In addressing a range of parental concerns, he has fielded countless questions about everything from vaccine misinformation to weighing risk versus reward.

Some parents, citing statistics on COVID-19’s lower risk to children than older adults, simply ask: “Does my child really need this?”

More: Counties, schools struggling to use testing alternative to student quarantines

Sellers response begins with the fact that CDC estimated about 42% of kids ages 5 to 11 may have contracted the illness at some point, including more than 8,300 who were hospitalized and 100 deaths.

Some parents also respond to the reality that there are many unknown risks of long-haul COVID-19 for children, while federally approved clinical studies found no serious side effects in the 5-11 age group.

The conversations also often touched on the risk of kids transmitting the respiratory disease to more vulnerable older relatives and classmates with underlying health conditions.

“We talk about how the family would feel if the child brought home COVID from school and that led to the demise of a grandparent,” Sellers said.

Still, some parents, including those to whom vaccination is more of a political statement and those who reject modern science, have refused to budge, though Sellers is far from closing the metaphorical door.

“I leave it open and say, ‘Here are some things to read or think about, or call me if there’s any chance you’re going to change your mind,’” he said,

Sellers has also placed a standing order in his patients’ electronic records for the COVID-19 vaccine.

“I tell them that any time you change your mind you can come right in, and we’ll have the shot ready for you.”

For further details about finding a COVID-19 vaccine, visit the federal website vaccine.gov, or call 1-800-232-0233.

Which NY counties are lagging in 5-11 vaccinations?

The following are several counties with some of the lower vaccination rates for ages 5-11, according to a USA TODAY Network New York review of state data on Friday. It reflects the percentage of the county's population within the age group.

Finger Lakes: Wyoming (10%); Orleans (9%); Genesee (11%)

Mohawk Valley: Fulton (6%); Herkimer (8%); Oneida (12%)

Hudson Valley: Orange (8%); Rockland (8%); Sullivan (8%)

Southern Tier: Chenango (9%); Delaware (10%); Tioga (10%); Steuben County (11%); Schuyler County (9%)

Vaccine data for ages 5-11 in each New York county is available at the state website coronavirus.health.ny.gov.

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David Robinson is the state health care reporter for the USA TODAY Network New York. He can be reached at drobinson@gannett.com and followed on Twitter: @DrobinsonLoHud

This article originally appeared on New York State Team: COVID-19 in NY: Some counties lagging in ages 5-11 vaccinations.