“From a public-health perspective, I do think that premature discussion and preparation of legislation for vaccine mandates for schoolchildren could result in a backlash,” said Dr. William Moss, executive director of the International Vaccine Access Center at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. While COVID-19 can pose a serious threat to children, it doesn’t rise to the level of smallpox, polio, or diphtheria. Further, phase-three trials of Pfizer’s vaccine for 5- to 11-year-olds were relatively small and more time might be needed to build trust among wary parents, according to Moss.

“I don’t think it’s unreasonable for parents to want to wait for information in that age group,” Moss said, while noting that it’s possible that the risk of serious side effects like myocarditis may actually prove to be lower in children and teenagers than adults. “I see mandates two or three years from now. This virus is still going to be around then, but maybe it will be less politicized and polarized and COVID-19 vaccines can be added quietly to the list of currently required vaccines for schoolchildren.”