Over 1 million Georgia kids could soon be vaccinated -- but will parents allow it?

The COVID-19 vaccine could soon be available for kids between the ages of 5 and 11.

According to the national Kids County Center, there are nearly a million kids in Georgia in that age group.

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The state tracks data for kids aged 5 - 10 . At least 73,000 of them have gotten COVID-19. More than half of those cases were in the last three months.

Channel 2′s Tyisha Fernandes found out that those numbers are not settling vaccination disagreements for some parents.

The decision on whether to vaccinate their young children is causing intense debate for some parents.

“So there’s two levels of disagreement that I think that we could see play out,” family law attorney Natlaie Teseton said. “One would be just a parent vs. parent disagreement, and then you’ve got child vs. parent disagreement.”

At this point, the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control only recommends that children 12 and older get the COVID-19 vaccine. An FDA panel has recommended it children as young as give, but the FDA hasn’t authorized it yet.

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Some parents say it is a difficult decision on whether or not to vaccinate their children.

“The guilt would be tremendous if I was risking something and he had a reaction to it,” Eva Logalgo said. “That’s something I would have to take responsibility for.”

Taylor Walker wanted to take her time with the decision.

“You know, it’s a little child!” Walker said. “Like, I don’t know how quick I want to jump on a decision to do that.”

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Local school districts haven’t said if they’ll require vaccinations once they are approved. But some parents worry that if they don’t vaccinate their children, they may be forced to go back to online learning.

Teston said that if a disagreement does come up between parents or a parent and child, they should talk to their medical providers.

“If there’s a parent-level disagreement on this, don’t just go making an assumption,” Teston said. “Get involved. Think about the facts that pertain to your particular children.”

Teston said that includes whether or not kids have pre-existing conditions and the rate of infection in their particular school or after school activities.

Parents who are divorced or separated may have even more issues, because typically, one parent has the power to make medical decisions. That could turn into litigation if the parents disagree.

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