The position of the NC Physician’s for Freedom (NCPFF) is that any COVID-19 vaccine mandate for children is unnecessary and unethical.  In this Position Statement we will explain that children do not need the Covid vaccine and that giving the Covid vaccine to children will not slow the spread.  However, administering these vaccines to children does carry significant potential health risks.

1. Children do not need the vaccine: 

• Survival rate: Children have a 99.997 percent survival rate from COVID-19. ^[1] For most children, COVID-19 is little more than a mild cold.   Nearly 70% of the 94 total children that have died from Covid had a significant preexisting condition. ^[2] The survival rate for a child between the ages of 5-11 without any significant preexisting condition is nearly 100%.  Given the availability of preventive measures such as Vitamin D and early treatment, no child needs to die from this virus.  This is demonstrated in Pfizer’s own data that demonstrated zero children from either group (vaccinated vs. unvaccinated) developed severe COVID, were hospitalized, or died.^[3]

• Natural immunity:  It is estimated that 42% of children have already had Covid and have natural immunity (and this is only the reported positive cases).  The CDC itself notes that cases in children are less likely to be reported than those in adults.^[4]

• As the data on natural immunity emerges, it is becoming abundantly clear that natural immunity is more robust and protective than the vaccine.  For example, the research out of Israel indicates that natural immunity is 13 times more protective than the vaccine for hospitalization and death. ^[5]It is also important to note that children with natural immunity were purposefully excluded from the vaccine trial. This is particularly important since there is growing evidence that those with natural immunity have a higher chance of side effects / reactions from the vaccine. ^[6]

2. Administering the COVID-19 vaccine to children will not slow the spread:

• Evidence suggests that children are less likely to spread Covid.  While data varies from country to country, opening schools did not show an increase in cases of Covid.^[7]

• The vaccine does not prevent people from contracting and spreading Covid.  In fact, there is some evidence that people who have had the vaccine actually have a higher viral load than those with normal infections.^[8]

3. The risk of vaccinating children far outweighs the benefits:

• Children are much more likely to be harmed than helped by the vaccine.  The highest short-term risk is myocarditis (inflammation of the heart muscle).  Children are 6 times more likely to be hospitalized for myocarditis from the COVID vaccine than from COVID infection.  ^[9]
  The FDA projects 109 excess myocarditis (heart inflammation) cases per 1 million kids vaccinated (ages 12 to 17).^[10]  If we vaccinate all eligible children, would cause 3,000 myocarditis cases in children. In adults, myocarditis carries a 20% fatality rate within 2 years, 50% within 10 years.  We do not know what the 2- and 5-year fatality rate will be for kids after myocarditis, but long-term disability is likely.

• More children began dying when vaccines began being administered.  Data from the UK shows a 56% increase in teenage mortality compared with prior years. The increase in deaths were noted the week adolescent vaccinations began. ^[11]   One vitally important question is: will this hold true in the US, and how will younger populations be affected?  This is an experiment—-we simply do not know.

• Long term risks are unknown. Pfizer has no safety data on the vaccine beyond 2 months after the 2^nd dose. This does not allow nearly enough time to determine the long-term physical impact that may take years to identify. Further, almost 5% of the study participants included no follow up safety data.  There is also no safety data on children after boosters or subsequent COVID-19 vaccines.^[12]  Preliminary studies raise concern for long term risks including autoimmune disease, cancer, and infertility.  Again, it will require years to determine if any of these diseases show an increase in prevalence. 

Conclusion:

At this point, it should be clear that administering COVID vaccines to children is not scientifically reasonable.  Giving a child a vaccine for a disease that has a near 100% survival rate, when there are known short term complications and potential long-term complications, is not following good science or sound public health practice.  Vaccine mandates of any kind are not in the best interest of our children.

^[1] https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/a-childs-chances-of-surviving-a-covid-19-infection-99-995-percent/

^[2] https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/health_policy/covid19-comorbidity-expanded-12092020-508.pdf

^[3] https://www.fda.gov/media/153508/download

^[4] https://www.fda.gov/media/153508/download

^[5] https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.08.24.21262415v1

^[6] https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/312538

^[7] https://news.tulane.edu/pr/study-reopening-k-12-schools-did-not-increase-hospitalizations-when-covid-19-cases-were-low.  https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-denmark-reopening-idUSKBN2341N7  

^[8] https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3897733

^[9] https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.08.30.21262866v1

^[10] https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/acip/meetings/downloads/slides-2021-10-20-21/07-COVID-Su-508.pdf

^[11] https://dailysceptic.org/2021/10/01/deaths-among-teenagers-up-56-since-vaccine-rollout-began/

^[12] https://www.fda.gov/media/153409/download