SURVEY: As Pfizer Seeks Approval, Would You Give Kids COVID Vax?

NEW YORK — Passions already raging in the pro and anti COVID-19 vaccine camps look set to move into a higher gear – Pfizer-BioNTech last week asked the U.S. Food And Drug Administration to clear its shot for children aged between 5 and 11.

The move has already been welcomed by New York officials. Gov. Kathy Hochul said that pediatricians should be ready to put vaccines to children as soon as the green light is given.

"Our focus remains keeping kids in schools, returning people to work, and reopening New York safely," Hochul said. "We all know the best way to ensure our continued progress is to get more shots in arms."

Children over 12 can already be vaccinated.

Pfizer shots could be given to children aged 5 to 11 in a matter of weeks if approval is granted, according to the Associated Press. It would be the first COVID vaccine available to kids under 12 in the nation and could help protect more 28 million people, the New York Times reports.

An independent review panel is slated to debate Pfizer's evidence on Oct. 26. A decision is expected sometime between Halloween and Thanksgiving.

Pfizer has previously said that children between 5 and 11 would receive a third of the adult dose.

Read more: Pfizer Says Low COVID Vaccine Dose Is Good For Kids 5 To 11

In total, Pfizer tested its COVID vaccine on 4,500 children worldwide, with 2,268 participants enrolled in the 5-11 age group. The children demonstrated a strong immune response one month after the second dose, said Pfizer. Further, the COVID-19 vaccine was well tolerated, with side effects generally comparable to those observed in participants 16 to 25 years old.

At a press briefing in September, Hochul discussed vaccinations for children and the push to vaccinate kids 12 to 17.

"We cannot do anything to endanger our children," she said. "It's like putting your kids in a car on a busy highway with no seat belt, or sending out a young, inexperienced driver and saying, 'Good luck.' Keeping them unvaccinated in a global pandemic is something I can't fathom as a parent."

But existing vaccines have their detractors. Vocal opponents have staged protests to express beliefs that the vaccines are not safe. New York City mandates that require vaccines for work in schools and hospitals, and to be inside at restaurants, gyms and entertainment venues, have received significant pushback.

Would you have your child vaccinated? Let us know in this survey:

With reporting by Lisa Finn, Nicole Rosenthal, Carly Baldwin and Alexis Tarazzi.