‘I literally cried’: Some parents are pinning their hopes on Moderna’s vaccines for kids younger than 6

Hudson Diener, 3, peeked into a cabinet during an appointment for a Moderna COVID-19 vaccine trial in Commack, N.Y. in the fall.EMMA H. TOBIN/Associated Press

They’ve hung on for two years, delaying family travel plans, juggling jobs and little ones at home, forever wrestling masks onto tiny faces even as the rest of the world moved on. But now, parents of young children are seeing a small glimmer of hope.

Moderna on Wednesday announced plans to ask US regulators to approve two shots of its mRNA COVID-19 vaccine for children aged 6 months to 5 years.

The Cambridge biotech found that its vaccine was 43.7 percent effective at preventing infections in infants 6 months to 2 years, and 37.5 percent effective in children 2 to 5 years. It’s a modest rate, similar to the level of protection adults gain against Omicron, but scientists say shots in both adults and children are likely to provide stronger protection against severe disease and hospitalization.

“I literally cried when I saw the Moderna data,” Jesse Earley, the parent of a 3-year-old, wrote in a Globe survey asking parents their thoughts on this latest development. “I’m ready for it to roll out in hopes that it will at least give MY family (which has an immune compromised parent) perhaps a somewhat normal summer.”

The efficacy rate

The efficacy rate did not bother many of the parents who responded to the Globe survey.

“That’s a whole lot better than nothing,” Ben Day, who has a 4 year old, wrote.

Paras Bhayani pointed out that though the efficacy seems low, it was measured against Omicron while the original COVID vaccine trials for adults, which were more than 90 percent effective, were against earlier forms of the virus.

“My hunch — though it’s just a hunch — is that this vaccine is probably equally effective relative to the adult vaccine, which has been a literal lifesaver,” Bhayani said.

Kurt Rever said it’s important to remember that vaccines are meant to limit serious illness, hospitalization, and death, not just to keep kids from falling sick.

“The most frustrating thing is that these vaccines have been withheld citing low efficacy rates however I have not seen any data on serious side effects,” Rever said. “If that is the case then I don’t see the downside in making the vaccine available to those who want it.”

A few parents, however, told the Globe they did not believe young children were at a high enough risk from COVID-19 to justify being vaccinated. The US Centers for Disease Control has said babies and children under 5 were hospitalized at much higher rates during the Omicron surge than earlier in the pandemic.

A long time coming

Some parents expressed frustration against how long it is taking for vaccines to become available for young children.

“If the adult vaccine had taken this long with as many starts, stops, and broken promises, there would have been riots in the streets,” Rever wrote. “Instead, we are left taking it one day at a time, trying to balance our children’s health, parenting, and work, while dealing with a broken child care system.”

Many said they felt like young children were “forgotten,” with families left still living in the pandemic while restrictions were stripped away for others.

Losing essential child care

Having to pull kids out of day care has wreaked havoc on parents’ lives, they said, hoping a vaccine for their little ones could help prevent shutdowns.

“If only you could hear my primal screams through the computer,” wrote Sarah Pekala. “It’s been hell.”

Pakela, whose son turned a year old just before the pandemic hit, described his day care shutting down for months, followed by a perpetual open-close cycle and seven-day quarantine period as cases exploded then waned. In January, Pakela’s son went to school on only seven days, for which the family paid nearly $2,000.

“I’m done. I’m tired. I’m broken forever in some small way,” Pakela said.

Pfizer or Moderna?

Moderna could pull ahead of Pfizer in the race to release a vaccine for young children if American and European regulators grant their approval for its two-dose regime in the coming weeks.

The Food and Drug Administration in February delayed its review of two doses of Pfizer’s vaccine for children under 5 after the company announced lackluster results. Pfizer is now collecting data on how effective a third dose may be.

Parents told the Globe they would choose whichever vaccine became available to them first, though they seemed to lean more toward Moderna’s two-shot option.