The rapid development of approaches to combating Covid-19 has changed how the pandemic affects our lives. While there are now a number of safe and effective layers of protection for adults to reduce their risk of the worst impacts of Covid-19, young children remain relatively unshielded.

Although children have been at a lower risk of severe Covid-19 compared with older adults, the past six months have been the most perilous time of the pandemic for them — especially very young children. Children under 5 are the only age group in the United States whose caregivers haven’t had the option to help them build immunity against the virus safely via vaccination. The Omicron wave made it clear that even more than two years into the pandemic, the virus can still be devastating for people, including children, and especially those who have little or no immunity.

During the peak of the Omicron wave, hospitalization rates for children up to age 4 were five times higher than during the Delta wave, and more than 400 in that age group have died since 2020. In addition to suffering from acute illness and the risk of long Covid, children and families are experiencing other tragedies caused by the coronavirus. Over 250,000 children in the United States have lost a caregiver to Covid-19 and even more have suffered disruptions to schooling and daily life from the virus.