The CDC still hasn't issued COVID vaccine guidelines, leaving access in limbo

"Sweeney-Garrett hasn't been able to get her daughters the shots because the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has yet to issue final guidelines for administering them. The rules are necessary for the federal Vaccines for Children Program to start shipping the vaccines to doctors, health departments and others. About half of U.S. kids are eligible for shots through the program. "I'm worried about my youngest daughter in particular having to go to the hospital because she is susceptible to respiratory complications," Sweeney-Garrett says. "And it's frustrating because I feel like this is within the control of the people in our government.""

"The lag by the CDC is very unusual. Typically, the CDC acts within days sometimes hours because of the urgency of getting shots into arms before the winter surge. The delay has created "a lot of confusion both among the public and even among providers around what the status is," says Dr. Susan Kansagra, chief medical officer for the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials."

""We have parents asking every day for vaccines. They want the COVID vaccine," says Dr. Elias Kass, who's the Sweeney-Garrett family's doctor. "And we don't have it. And we don't have an ETA. We don't have anything. We don't want kids to be sick. We have the opportunity to prevent that suffering. And we as a society are blowing it.""

Remy Sweeney-Garrett wants to vaccinate her 9-year-old and 18-month-old daughters but cannot because the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has not issued final pediatric vaccination guidelines. Those guidelines are required before the federal Vaccines for Children Program can ship doses to doctors, health departments and other providers; about half of U.S. children are eligible through the program. The CDC delay is unusual given typical rapid action to prepare for winter surges. The postponement is producing parental worry about serious respiratory complications, daily requests from families, provider confusion, and no ETA for vaccine availability. Adults also face inconsistent state rules that complicate access.

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