"Our fear right now is we could end up with an outbreak of something like measles, whooping cough or meningitis already in the midst of a pandemic," Thakkar told KIRO-TV. "Those diseases are even more serious for kids to get and more deadly than coronavirus."
With immunization rates dropping across the country, warnings were issued by both the Department of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“Even a small drop in those numbers can really cause vaccine-preventable diseases to reoccur,” said Dr. Elizabeth Meade, president of the Washington Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics. “The reality is at this point I think preventable diseases are a bigger risk to the health of young kids than COVID-19.”
Some providers are most worried about vaccinations given before age 2, including measles, whooping cough, meningitis, and tetanus, and the boosters that follow before kindergarten and middle school.
Meade wants parents to know many steps are being taken to make it safe to go see their pediatricians. She says many offices are doing well visits and visits for infants and newborns only in the morning and having sick kids come in the afternoon. Offices should be cleaned thoroughly before the next day.
Also, many patients aren’t using waiting rooms, added Meade. They wait in their cars and are taken right to the examination rooms. Immunizations can even happen outside, with your child in the car.
"People really need to get back to accessing that care so we don't face new health challenges for these children," said Meade, adding the best thing parents can do is to call their children's pediatricians to ask about their care.
Many visits can be handled with a video call and if necessary, a short in-person visit for vaccines or other tests, she added.
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