Trick Or Treating Guidance For Unvaccinated Kids In PA

PENNSYLVANIA — Concerned about Halloween this year with coronavirus still circulating? You shouldn't be, according to Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

When asked on Sunday by Fox News host Chris Wallace, Dr. Walensky said outdoor trick or treating should be fine, even for the 48 million American children who are unvaccinated.

"I would say put on those costumes, stay outside and enjoy your trick-or-treating," she said. "If you are spread out doing your doing or trick-or-treating, that should be very safe for your children."

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She added that mitigation strategies should still be in place: avoid gathering in large groups, and avoid screaming like at a sporting event.

In fact, many beloved Halloween events that were canceled last year are back in 2021.

An advisory committee for the Food & Drug Administration is scheduled to meet Tuesday of this week to discuss the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine for children ages 5-11, and that committee is expected to give emergency-use authorization.

Once that approval is given, American children could start lining up for shots as early as next week.

The Pennsylvania Department of Health has already ordered vaccine providers to work directly with school districts to establish clinics to facilitate the efficient distribution of the vaccine to kids.

What the CDC director said she doesn't think is safe are autumn football games, particularly large numbers of unvaccinated young people crammed close to each other in the stands.

"I wouldn't gather in large settings outside and do screaming like you are seeing in those football games," said Dr. Walensky Sunday.

With reporting from Patch correspondent Carly Baldwin