ORLANDO, Fla. — Doctors say they’re increasingly worried as Florida families delay or forgo vaccinations for COVID-19, the flu and other deadly diseases, putting the state at risk of overwhelming hospitals again.
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As of December 6, Florida had the 40th highest vaccination rate in kids ages five to 11 years old, according to CDC data. Just 11% of kids within that range had visited a clinic, doctor’s office or vaccination site since the shots became available last month.
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For comparison, Vermont, which is battling an outbreak, led the nation at 47% vaccinated. The United States’ average is 17%, while West Virginia, which initially led the nation in adult vaccinations in the early days of the rollout, has vaccinated just 3.6% of its younger children.
“It doesn’t surprise me,” Nemours Physician Thomas Lacy said. “It’s unfortunate because you really want these kids vaccinated.”
Lacy attributed low COVID vaccination rates to the lack of an ongoing outbreak in Florida, where the virus has traditionally spiked in the hot summer months.
However, he and his team were more concerned that flu vaccinations dropped dramatically. Data shows Florida is currently last in the nation, and Lacy said the state had experienced a 50% decline in flu vaccination rates since 2019.
He said many of his patients’ parents were declining the shots since their kids did not get the flu in 2020, adding that flu season started late this year, but the typical winter outbreak is now beginning to spread.
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“Without having flu in the community last year, our community immunity is going to be lower than normal,” he explained. “That’s why things are ripe for a large outbreak.”
According to the CDC, approximately 2,900 Floridians die from the flu every year.
Dr. Lacy said parents’ hesitations are now extending to routine childhood vaccines. He said he has noticed delays across the board from parents of young children, including the Measles shot, which is estimated to prevent 500,000 infections and hundreds of deaths in the US every year.
“Measles can become an epidemic if not all the children are vaccinated, and that’s worldwide one of the big worries,” he said.
With doctors advising parents it’s safe to get multiple shots in the same visit, Dr. Lacy said there’s still time to get kids vaccinated and give them some form of protection from getting sick before the holidays.
“Vaccines are the cornerstone of healthy children,” he said. “So it’s really, really important topic.”
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