BEAUMONT, Texas — There's still a huge push to get one of the more vulnerable groups the shot of hope.
Two elementary schools in Beaumont held vaccine drives Thursday, and we may see more of these for younger kids in the coming months.
Drug company Moderna is planning to ask the FDA for approval for their dose to protect children ranging from six months to six years old.
But will Southeast Texas parents be taking their kids to the pharmacy?
There are some parents who are on the fence about vaccinating their children. While some believe some protection is better than no protection.
It's been five months since vaccines were approved for kids 5 to 11 years old.
At Blanchette Elementary School, vaccines were brought to the little ones.
“I was very happy that I got my daughter vaccinated,” said Ronal Cabrera. “The main reason was because everybody is out. everybody is out with no mask touching everything.”
Cabrera said he didn't think twice to make sure his little girl participated in this vaccine drive. He also used it as a chance to get vaccinated.
“I'm more and more happy now that they actually have not just given it to them. They actually gave it to the parents, so now the parents can get vaccinated,” Cabrera said.
Now, Moderna is working to get the green light to administer a low-dose COVID-19 vaccine for children ages six months to under six years of age.
When it comes to the youngest of the community, parents like Shunteria Bryant and Abria Holts are on the fence about vaccinating their three-year-old son.
“I just feel like too many chemicals. I don't really know exactly what all they put in those shots, to begin with. So I don't want to put in a child,” Holts said.
But some are in favor of what Moderna is doing like Travis Victor who is a grandfather to an infant.
“Yes any protection is better than none,” Victor said.
Dr. Msonthi Levine said he wants to ensure companies work to put a safe vaccine product on the market.
“They don't want anything to go wrong with the vaccine. So, they're not going to put a risky product on the market knowing that people are looking for it to fail,” Levine said.
Moderna is aiming to have COVID-19 vaccines available for babies and toddlers by this summer.
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