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Vaccine for 5-11 year olds - would you go abroad to get it?

81 replies

Kirkybean2 · 03/11/2021 08:41

Has anyone done this already for their 12+? I’ve heard vaccine tourism is a thing. My kids were born in the USA, we lived there for a few years, so I’d consider travelling to get them jabbed if the U.K. drags its feet on vaxxing younger kids. In some states you don’t have to be resident to qualify. Anyone know anything more about this? An expensive option, but one we’d consider if it was a sure thing and there’s no other option in sight here at home.

OP posts:
Bizawit · 03/11/2021 13:29

*process not princess !

EatShitBoswell · 03/11/2021 13:30

@winterisaroundthecorner

If it does get approved in UK at some point then I am sure it will have been proved safe enough. A trial of a couple of thousand does nothing to convince me.

I hope by the time the vaccine is approved in UK, you have better understanding, either you decide to vaccinate or not. After all, many children in other countries will be guinea pig for you to decide it's safe or not for your children. Seriously, there are children who are participating/participated in the trial for greater good. Be respectful, at least.

I don't see how that post was disrespectful at all?
Remmy123 · 03/11/2021 14:03

Are there any 5 year olds with long covid?

Doubtful

We have been told from the start that covid doesn't affect young children and it doesn't in that age group.

winterisaroundthecorner · 03/11/2021 14:06

Trials of couple thousand children were done for greater good, them, the children risking their own health. I can see why people feel uneasy, but blatantly saying the trials won't mean anything to convince them because of the number when you are not contributing, they are disrespecting sacrifice of those people.

EatShitBoswell · 03/11/2021 14:13

@winterisaroundthecorner

Trials of couple thousand children were done for greater good, them, the children risking their own health. I can see why people feel uneasy, but blatantly saying the trials won't mean anything to convince them because of the number when you are not contributing, they are disrespecting sacrifice of those people.
So people are allowed to feel uneasy but to be honest about it is disrespectful?
flyornofly · 03/11/2021 14:15

I would but only because we have family in foreign countries that are vaccinating children, and so have a requirement that all unvaccinated kids require hotel quarantine on entry (even where they’re not eligible for a vaccine in their home country ie U.K.). I would like for my kids to see their grandparents again!

Separately - I just got a third shot (in lieu of a booster; which I won’t be eligible for in the U.K.) in the US and it was super easy. Nothing but an ID needed.

severusvape · 03/11/2021 15:12

I believe the uptake of vaccines amongst adults in the US hasn’t been what they hoped so they need to vaccinate children to protect the adults. Take one for the team kids!

I’m not anti vax in the slightest, have had both jabs myself and my children have had all their childhood vaccinations.
I just don’t choose for them to have this particular vaccine, at the moment, until their is more published data on its safety.

Probably best to go abroad in your case, if JCVI don’t recommend it for 12-15 year olds then vaccines for 5-11 will be some time away.

iamthepassenger · 03/11/2021 20:56

To get the discussion back on track, I've been interested in getting my under 12s vaccinated in the US as well. We do a lot of international
travel to visit family and I'm concerned that the lack of vaccination status will limit our ability to visit family in different countries, or force the children to quarantine every time we cross a border. @Kirkybean2 do you know how/if you could get a vaccine passport for someone living abroad who got the vaccines in the States? Or is this a purely medical decision for you so a vaccine passport wouldn't be of the highest importance? From what I understand, for the adult vaccines at least, I'm not sure pharmacies in the US did much checking for ID, so I don't imagine actually getting the vaccines will be difficult, but I could be wrong. Medically, I'd like to see how the rollout goes for 5-11s in other countries before getting my children vaccinated, but I'm not against it and, if safe, will do it if it continues to disrupt my children's education here/ability to see family living abroad.

iamthepassenger · 03/11/2021 21:35

Though from May of this year, this article suggests (without a link) that US citizens regardless of residency can get the vaccine: www.nytimes.com/2021/05/11/travel/expats-coronavirus-vaccine.html

Wizzwazzwas · 03/11/2021 21:43

I would consider it yes. I have paid for my kids to have other vaccinations privately in the UK. I do not want them to have COVID as a disease if it can be avoided with vaccination. I am quite pissed off 12-17s still only offered a single dose here. I am not concerned re myocarditis risk in teens. The risk of it is far higher if they catch covid.

cherin · 03/11/2021 21:55

I am Italian originally, and if my eldest wasn’t eligible for second dose because he’s 17 3/4 I would have definitely tried to get him a second dose in italy. Would I do it with his youngest brother (10yo)? Not sure, at the moment it’s not an option so I am not considering it at all. My guts say that the vaccine should really go to a developing country first. I know reality works differently and that it’s not a either/or…but I still would feel a bit guilty about vaccinating a

Bewildered2021 · 04/11/2021 07:10

I’m with you on this. I’m actually shocked people would contemplate it. The vax prevents against severe disease, hospitalisation and death. Children are low risk . I would understand if it halted transmission but it doesn’t.

cherin · 04/11/2021 07:56

Well it does reduce it. And every time we visit a grandparent (of whom we have 2 doing cancer treatment or just after) we take extra precautions and self isolate voluntarily because we’re worried about the youngest being the most likely source of contagious (we grown ups mostly work from home). So even a “limitation” of the risk would be good, for grandparents, because it’s not easy and it’s not psychologically easy for the 2 generations to see each other so little when the time together is not going to be decades…
So I can see a benefit in giving the little one a vaccine.
But going abroad to do it yet- perhaps not for us.

Incidentally, I was reading earlier an article about Russians doing vaccine tourism to Croatia, because they can get the vaccine for free there (including the j&j single dose) and it’s valid as Eu pass, so it is a thing…but not for children yet…

SomewhereEast · 04/11/2021 09:25

This will go down like a lead balloon but....could we talk about the ethics of rushing to vaccinate incredibly low risk Western children when a third of African health care workers haven't even received a single dose yet (source: International Council of Nurses) and most African countries have yet to meet a target to vaccinate even 10% of their populations (source: WHO). We will look back on this with so much shame in twenty years time. Honestly just stay at home and donate your flights bill somewhere useful.

SomewhereEast · 04/11/2021 09:28

Also it kind of is an either / or, at least for next 12 months. Vaccine production is incredibly complex and can't be upscaled massively in a short space of time, plus Pfizer & Moderna are expensive to buy and hard to deploy in terms of what the developing world can manage. So we are making a choice right now.

zafferana · 04/11/2021 09:35

We're dual US/UK citizens and I wouldn't book a trip specially to get our DC vaccinated, but we did get our 13-year-old a dose this summer while we were there anyway. We took him to Walgreens, they didn't bat an eyelid.

Would I take his 10-year-old brother to the US just in order to get him vaccinated? No, but again, if we were there for a visit and the vaccine still hadn't been approved for his age group at the time of that visit I would get him vaccinated there. Several of his friends have had Covid already and none have been very ill, but for me it's more about the disruption to his life/education and 10 days stuck in his bedroom.

MarlowMafia · 04/11/2021 09:35

I am in favour of vaccination but wouldn’t travel to get it now firstly because I think we should be avoiding non-essential travel and secondly because of global vaccine inequality as pp mentioned.

Boofay · 04/11/2021 10:44

I cannot wait to get my 9 year old vaccinated. I hope the vaccine will eventually be offered to him, and also eventually my 3 year old.
I wouldn't travel to another country to get them vaccinated though. I'll wait for it to roll out in the U.K., although I hope it happens soon.
As someone mentioned up thread, I do feel awful that there are lower income countries who've still not been able to vaccinate essential workers and their vulnerable population. However, I've always been told that the best thing you can do is accept the vaccine when you're offered it. And this is what we'll do if/when it's offered to my 9yr old.

HSHorror · 04/11/2021 13:32

I would because being in primary there is no protection. No other vaccinated pupils no masks. And i dont trust gov/jcvi to authorise it.
My eldest was ill for a year after a virus and missed so much school.
Also being young in year would have just turned 11 going to secondary so do whole of y7 unvaxxed at minimum.
And like pp cev relatives and relatives abroad.

Kirkybean2 · 04/11/2021 19:14

@iamthepassenger

To get the discussion back on track, I've been interested in getting my under 12s vaccinated in the US as well. We do a lot of international travel to visit family and I'm concerned that the lack of vaccination status will limit our ability to visit family in different countries, or force the children to quarantine every time we cross a border. *@Kirkybean2* do you know how/if you could get a vaccine passport for someone living abroad who got the vaccines in the States? Or is this a purely medical decision for you so a vaccine passport wouldn't be of the highest importance? From what I understand, for the adult vaccines at least, I'm not sure pharmacies in the US did much checking for ID, so I don't imagine actually getting the vaccines will be difficult, but I could be wrong. Medically, I'd like to see how the rollout goes for 5-11s in other countries before getting my children vaccinated, but I'm not against it and, if safe, will do it if it continues to disrupt my children's education here/ability to see family living abroad.
Thanks for this. In the first instance, it’s a medical issue for us. I’m not so bothered about the vaccine passport side of things, although as Pfizer is one of the vaccines recognised in the U.K., I’d imagine that might be somewhat advantageous? As long as you have some record of it, at least. I think the U.K. will roll it out eventually for this age group but I’d rather they had 2 jabs over 3 weeks to give better protection and then any follow up boosters in the U.K.
OP posts:
Kirkybean2 · 04/11/2021 19:17

@zafferana

We're dual US/UK citizens and I wouldn't book a trip specially to get our DC vaccinated, but we did get our 13-year-old a dose this summer while we were there anyway. We took him to Walgreens, they didn't bat an eyelid.

Would I take his 10-year-old brother to the US just in order to get him vaccinated? No, but again, if we were there for a visit and the vaccine still hadn't been approved for his age group at the time of that visit I would get him vaccinated there. Several of his friends have had Covid already and none have been very ill, but for me it's more about the disruption to his life/education and 10 days stuck in his bedroom.

This is really helpful, thank you. Presumably they didn’t ask for insurance details? Enough to just flash a US passport and you’re done?
OP posts:
winterisaroundthecorner · 04/11/2021 19:33

@SomewhereEast

This will go down like a lead balloon but....could we talk about the ethics of rushing to vaccinate incredibly low risk Western children when a third of African health care workers haven't even received a single dose yet (source: International Council of Nurses) and most African countries have yet to meet a target to vaccinate even 10% of their populations (source: WHO). We will look back on this with so much shame in twenty years time. Honestly just stay at home and donate your flights bill somewhere useful.
I've seen it on the news that a lot of African countries actually has vaccines, but the logistics and misinformation are causing low up takes, ending up vaccines to go to waste in some cases.. So I really don't think it's as simple as that, tbh.
zafferana · 05/11/2021 13:18

Presumably they didn’t ask for insurance details? Enough to just flash a US passport and you’re done.

It seems to vary who you get, as to what they ask for and some ask for insurance, although you don't have to have insurance to get the jab so I don't know why really! I wasn't asked for insurance details, but I was asked for my US address (I gave MIL's) and US phone number (I had a US SIM in my phone, so gave that). But yes, we had to show our passports and otherwise it was straightforward.

theemperorhasnoclothes · 08/11/2021 10:05

@SomewhereEast

This will go down like a lead balloon but....could we talk about the ethics of rushing to vaccinate incredibly low risk Western children when a third of African health care workers haven't even received a single dose yet (source: International Council of Nurses) and most African countries have yet to meet a target to vaccinate even 10% of their populations (source: WHO). We will look back on this with so much shame in twenty years time. Honestly just stay at home and donate your flights bill somewhere useful.
But those who are making this decision cannot influence in any way whatsoever the roll out of vaccines in other countries.

Parents have parental responsibility to do what they think is in the best interests of their child's health.

It's not like refusing a vaccine for your child will mean an African adult gets a jab sooner. Far from it, it's far more likely to end up with expired and unused vaccine going in the bin.

Also the logistical / storage problems around the mRNA jabs mean that in countries with poor infrastructure, they will use AZ. So it's not even the same vaccine or supplier or producer or factory.

Plus, the more out of control we allow covid to run in this country, the more we risk a vaccine-evading mutation developing. We already gave the world Alpha. THAT is a far bigger risk to those countries and the only way (in this country at least) we're addressing that significant risk is by vaccinating.

The more people vaccinated the better in global world health terms no ifs or buts.

If we really wanted to help those countries, we'd mask up, ventilate, keep covid levels low here to reduce the risk of vaccine-evading mutations, vaccinate as much of the population as possible, and lobby our MPs to fund the vaccine and factories to produce it in other countries.

Nerdygirl · 08/11/2021 13:25

No way because both my children had it, nether of us got it and they had a sniffle ! Why on earth would I vaccinate for that and risk the harm from a vaccine. They are unlikely to get it again for a while and if they do they are most likely to be ok.

I personally cannot understand the need