Borrowing proven policy strategies to vaccinate kids against COVID-19 : lessons from past successes can provide a roadmap for ensuring equity in immunization efforts Child Child, Preschool COVID-19 Vaccines Health Equity Health Policy Vaccination Hesitancy With the authorization of COVID-19 vaccines for children ages five and older, focus is shifting to how the United States can deploy those shots widely and equitably. The country has yet to hone its approach to immunizing adults, as shown by low vaccination rates and persistent disparities in COVID-19 and other vaccines, such as flu shots. For vaccinating children against COVID-19, however, there is reason for optimism if policymakers and healthcare providers apply lessons from prior vaccination challenges and successes. The United States generally performs admirably in most children’s immunizations, reaching more than 90 percent of kids for some vaccines, such as polio and chickenpox, and greatly reducing vaccination disparities in the past few decades. However, there also is cause for concern. For instance, disinformation and concerns about safety have made COVID-19 vaccines contentious for some people, and the United States has underperformed in the delivery of other similarly controversial vaccines. Rates of vaccination against human papillomavirus (HPV)--an infection that can cause cancer--remain well below other vaccines more than a decade after it was first approved and recommended, with controversy around the immunization relating to HPV being a sexually transmitted infection. Those low vaccination rates also come with disparities in which lower-income and Black and Hispanic children experience lower HPV vaccination rates. Additionally, even though one COVID-19 vaccine has been authorized for children ages 12-17 for months, vaccination rates for those children fall behind even the lackluster rates for adults. Recent survey data also indicate that many parents remain hesitant to vaccinate younger children against COVID-19, as well. This does not necessarily mean that COVID-19 vaccination campaigns for U.S. children cannot be successful. By borrowing from strategies that have worked historically, states can develop strong playbooks for protecting children from COVID-19, turning another page in the fight against the pandemic. [Minneapolis, Minnesota] : State Health Access Data Assistance Center, University of Minnesota, November 2021 State Health Access Data Assistance Center (Minn.) issuing body. University of Minnesota, issuing body, Technical Report Text Illustrations 1 online resource (1 PDF file (6 pages)) nlm:nlmuid-9918383087306676-pdf 9918383087306676 http://resource.nlm.nih.gov/9918383087306676 English United States Reproduced with permission of the copyright holder. Further use of the material is subject to CC BY-NC-ND license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0