Opinion editor's note: Editorials represent the opinions of the Star Tribune Editorial Board, which operates independently from the newsroom.

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Amelia Helm's twins had just turned 1 when the COVID-19 pandemic began. Now they're 3, and the Richfield family is still waiting for the little boys' chance to get the most potent protection medicine offers against the virus — the COVID vaccine.

Kids under 5 are the last group for which the shots have been authorized for general use. For families like the Helms, that has meant keeping their guard up against COVID long after others who were vaccinated eased up and returned to a more normal life.

Finally, the twins' turn appears to be close at hand, with U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisers on Thursday greenlighting the Pfizer and Moderna shots for kids down to six months of age. That should swiftly clear the way for other regulatory signoffs needed. The vaccines could be available as early as next week.

Helm is already planning to get her sons immunized expeditiously. The shots will protect her kids. She also hopes their availability will cut down on the child care disruption created by even a single case of COVID in her sons' preschool classroom, which triggers a five-day quarantine and follow-up testing for exposed kids.

"I'm excited about one less serious illness that kids are going to come down with in the scope of all the germs and viruses they are exposed to," Helm told an editorial writer.

Hopefully, peace of mind will spur parents in Minnesota and elsewhere to get their kids the shots, too. But COVID vaccine uptake in older kids suggests that innovative strategies are critical to boost awareness of the vaccines' new availability and help parents find a place to get the no-cost shots.

Just 42% of Minnesota kids ages 5-11 have had a first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, according to the state Department of Health. That leaves far too many kids without the additional protection that being fully vaccinated against COVID provides.

Collaboration and innovation are called for among the state's respected nonprofit hospitals and insurers. In particular, more strategies are needed to reach families who may not have a regular doctor or clinic.

This is the time to mobilize whatever mobile options exist to bring the shots to underserved rural and urban communities. High-profile marketing campaigns are also in order to ensure parents know that the shots are available at clinics and, potentially, at some pharmacies.

Walgreens, for example, is "authorized to administer vaccinations to children 3+," a spokeswoman said this week.

The CVS chain plans "to provide COVID-19 vaccinations to children 18 months through four years of age at our national network of 1,100 MinuteClinic locations once the FDA and CDC have provided guidance and inventory is received."

The shots' availability is likely to prompt some common questions. To answer them, the Star Tribune Editorial Board enlisted Dr. Nathan Chomilo, a respected pediatrician and medical director for the state's Medicaid program.

  • We've come this far without a COVID vaccine for very young kids. Why get it now? While elders have the highest hospitalization risk, kids can still get seriously ill. It may be a very small percentage, but when the virus is so widespread, the absolute number of kids impacted is more significant than we'd like. Nor is it possible to predict which kids might get really sick. Vaccinating provides the best protection possible against a still-evolving virus, Chomilo said.
  • Many kids have already been infected. Do they still need the shots? Yes. Reinfections remain a risk. "But we know that folks who have had COVID and the shots have the best immunity and are best prepared for any new variant that comes down the pike," Chomilo said.
  • Does the lengthy time it took to authorize the vaccine for young children raise questions about its safety? The length of time signals that safety was weighed carefully despite considerable pressure to authorize it sooner. Based on the data Chomilo has reviewed, he has no hesitations about shots for young kids. He got his son vaccinated the day after the boy's 5th birthday. Pediatricians like him welcome deeper conversations about the shots' safety and efficacy, and Chomilo urges parents to rely on reputable information sources.

"This is now a vaccine-preventable illness for all ages," Chomilo said. "That is a very exciting thing to think about considering where we were when we first started with COVID."