Meet “Vaccinate Me Elmo.”
The little pink Sesame Street character revealed on Twitter on Tuesday that he simply acquired his COVID-19 vaccine, a week after the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention approved the Pfizer
PFE,
+0.75%
and Moderna
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photographs for youngsters beneath 5.
“Elmo got the COVID vaccine today, just like Elmo’s mommy and daddy!” reads a put up from the Muppet’s official Twitter account. “Elmo’s daddy had a lot of questions, but Elmo’s doctor said the vaccine would help keep Elmo healthy, and all of Elmo’s friends and family too!”
The tweet included a video tweeted out by the official Sesame Street Twitter account that featured Elmo’s dad, Louie, explaining how their household pediatrician beneficial the vaccine, which was not too long ago accredited for the youngest American kids. (Elmo is meant to be 3.)
Related: COVID vaccines for teenagers beneath 5 — what dad and mom have to know
“I had a lot of questions about Elmo getting the COVID vaccine. Was it safe? Was it the right decision?” Louie says in the minute-long clip. “I talked to our pediatrician so I could make the right choice. I learned that Elmo getting vaccinated is the best way to keep himself, our friends, neighbors and everyone else healthy and enjoying the things they love.”
This video was additionally shared on YouTube, with feedback turned off.
The tweet drew loads of feedback and reactions, nonetheless, main “Elmo” to development on Twitter on Tuesday afternoon. Reactions had been blended. Some praised the public well being announcement, whereas others prompt Elmo was getting used as a puppet for the CDC. Sen. Ted Cruz was one vocal opponent, tweeting, “Thanks, @sesamestreet for saying parents are allowed to have questions! You then have
@elmo aggressively advocate for vaccinating children UNDER 5.”
Last fall, Cruz additionally referred to as out Sesame Street icon Big Bird for tweeting about getting vaccinated. “Government propaganda…for your 5 year old!” Cruz posted in response.
The public service announcement comes from Sesame Workshop, the academic nonprofit behind the “Sesame Street” PBS sequence, and produced in partnership with the CDC and the American Academy of Pediatrics. The AAP has given a “strong recommendation” for administering the approved COVID-19 vaccinations to all infants, kids and adolescents 6 months of age and older who do not need contraindications to receiving a COVID-19 vaccine, noting that the vaccines had been evaluated by “a long-standing, rigorous, and transparent process by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.”
“Many parents understandably have questions about the COVID-19 vaccines for young children, and we want to encourage them to ask questions and seek out information,” Jeanette Betancourt, Sesame Workshop’s senior vice chairman of U.S. social impression, mentioned in a assertion. “With help from Elmo and his dad Louie, we want to model real conversations, encourage parents’ questions, and help children know what to expect.”
Sesame Street character Elmo, proven hugging his dad Louie, acquired his COVID-19 vaccine, in keeping with a new PSA.
Sesame Street
Indeed, loads of dad and mom have had questions on COVID vaccine for teenagers beneath 5. Just one in 5 dad and mom of youngsters beneath 5 mentioned they plan to vaccinate a youngster straight away, in keeping with a current Kaiser Family Foundation survey. And a little over half of fogeys with youngsters on this age group mentioned they wanted extra details about the vaccines’ security and effectiveness for younger kids — though with back-to-school simply a few months away, well being officers are urging dad and mom to get their kids vaccinated directly.
“These are very safe vaccines, and we know that COVID can be dangerous, including in children,” Dr. Adam Ratner, a father and the director of pediatric infectious illnesses at Hassenfeld Children’s Hospital at NYU Langone, beforehand informed MarketWatch. More than 30,000 kids beneath 5 have been hospitalized with COVID-19, and practically 500 deaths have been reported in that age group.
For extra details about COVID-19 vaccines for teenagers beneath 5, learn MarketWatch’s FAQ.
And what did Elmo say about getting the shot? “There was a little pinch, but it was OK,” Elmo says in the clip.
