To protect their chronically ill kids, parents want to be added to Manitoba's vaccine eligibility list
'I know that if COVID hits him, I'm going to lose him,' says mom of toddler with serious medical conditions
Parents with children who have serious medical conditions say they want to get avaccine so they can protect their kids from a potentially fatal COVID-19 infection but in Manitoba, family caregiversunder 40 don't currently qualify.
Kristine and Ryan Rowes provide 24/7 care to their 2-year-old son, AJ. He haschronic lung disease, pulmonary hypertension, and cerebral palsy. He has a tracheostomy and requires a feeding tube.
"I know that if COVID hits him, I'm going to lose him,"Kristine said.
Currently, primary caregivers to a family member at risk do not qualify for a vaccine under Manitoba'seligibility restrictions.
Since Kristine and Ryan are both in their 30s and don't have medical issues themselves, they don't meet any of the current criteria to get a vaccine.
AJ also can't receive the shot, since no COVID-19 vaccine in Canada has been approved for use on children his age (Pfizer-BioNTech's vaccine has been cleared for people as young as 16, but the others are limited to adults).
"It's like they haven't taken these kids into account," Ryan said.
Kristine says it feels "like the government doesn't see us."
"At least help us protect our son and all the medically fragile children out there," she said.
The couple said they have done everything they can to keep AJ safe, which also meant stopping home care and taking on all of AJ's care themselves, to prevent the risk of a support worker accidentally infectingtheir son.
Most home-care workersare currently eligible for the vaccine.
"It is frustrating, considering we basically do the job that these health-care workers would be if they were coming to take care of our son," Ryan said.
The couple says their son's pediatrician wants parents like them to get the vaccine, but there's no exemption for them.
"They're totally ready to give a letter that, yes, these kids are in a very serious and potentially fatal situation if they contract COVID," Ryan said.
There are many children in Manitoba in the same situation, Kristine said.
"There are kids in the Children's Hospital that are still fighting for their lives and they need their parents to visit them every day. What if those parents get COVID?"
Low infection rate in children: province
A spokesperson for the province said data shows there's been a very low infection rate in young children, and there have been no COVID-19-related deaths under the age of two in Manitoba.
"Due to vaccine supply issues and an overwhelming demand from the public to get a vaccination, we've had to make some very difficult decisions" on prioritization,a provincial spokesperson wrote in an email to CBC News.
"We would encourage those primary caregivers, who are age eligible, to book their vaccination appointment."
Some family members of chronicallyill children did manage to get a vaccine before eligibility rules changed.
In March, Rebekkaand Cody Campbell receiveda dose of the AstraZenecavaccine as one of the province's "priority groups," since they are household contacts oftheirson, Damon.
The three-and-a-half-year-old has omphalocele, which means some of his organs are on the outside of his body, and several other lung and heart conditions.
The province later put an age restriction on who could getAstraZeneca following national guidance and concerns over potential blood clots in younger people.
Rebekka said after that, other young parentsof children with chronic health issues had their appointments cancelled.
She said if AstraZeneca isn't an option, the province should give family members who directly care for a relativeat risk access to the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines.
"At this point in time, myself and my husband, we are the only form of protection that our son is going to have from COVID-19. Our son won't be able to protect himself," Rebekka said.
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