Willingness to Accept Expedited COVID-19 Vaccine Research for Children Aged < 12 Years After Adult Vaccine Approval

Purpose: The goal of this study was to assess if caregivers' attitudes toward the regulatory process of approving the vaccine against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) for children aged <12 years changed after a vaccine was approved for adults. Methods: This was a larger scale COVIPAS (COVID-19 Parental Attitude Study) survey of caregivers presenting with their children aged <= 12 years for emergency care in 12 hospitals in the United States, Canada, and Israel. The study compared willingness to support abridged research into COVID-19 vaccines for children between the peak of the pandemic (March-May 2020) and after a COVID-19 vaccine became available for adults (December 2020-March 2021). Findings: A total of 1956 surveys were included in the analyses. Overall, 385 (30.9%) caregivers in the pre-vaccine approval period and 250 (35.3%) caregivers in the post-adult vaccine phase supported abridged research into COVID-19 vaccines (P < 0.001). In both phases, mothers were less likely to favor abridged approval. Those with children who were fully vaccinated based on the pediatric schedule in their country favored abridged approval in phase 1 (odds ratio, 1.98; 95% confidence interval, 1.31-3.08) but less so in phase 2. In both phases, age and concerns of parents that they had COVID-19 or their child had COVID-19 were not associated with changes in response between phases.

Automated summary

This study investigated the attitudes of caregivers of children aged <12 years towards the regulatory process of approving COVID-19 vaccines. The results showed that there was a difference in willingness to support abridged research into COVID-19 vaccines between the pre-vaccine approval period and after a COVID-19 vaccine became available for adults. Mothers were less likely to favor abridged approval.