Arin Parsa's Testimony on Youth Vaccine Inequities
Hello, everyone! Thank you, Dr. Nunez-Smith and the White House, for the opportunity to speak here today.
I’m Arin Parsa from California, and I am the founder of Teens for Vaccines. We are a youth collective with ambassadors across many states in the U.S. working tirelessly to educate and empower teens to get their COVID and routine vaccinations and lobbying school boards for COVID-19 safety measures. I’m also researching the factors affecting adolescent vaccine rates since the 2019 measles outbreaks.
When I think of vaccine equity for teens, I envision all teens having access to vaccines (including rural teens and under-resourced teens). I also envision all teens to be able to self-consent to them.
Today, teens face many barriers. They often lack easy access to vaccinations, especially when parents are busy or working multiple jobs, and transportation is an issue. School-based health clinics can be a game-changer, providing a platform for teens to get vaccinated. Teachers can also play a significant role by incorporating vaccine science into their classes and curriculum. Education is the best antidote for misinformation. Given that parental hesitancy is a significant barrier, schools, nurses, and doctors can be powerful advocates, bridging the gap in conversations between teens and their parents.
Finally, not only do we have a patchwork of minor consent laws, but certain states have layered on parental consent specifically for the COVID vaccine. More needs to be done to make legislators science-aware and to contain disinformation that is swaying a lot of people out there on social media.
Ultimately, as the post-COVID era is dawning on us, teens need to be heard and empowered to get vaccinated and be champions of public health so we can overcome vaccine hesitancy and make the world a safer place.
Once again, I want to thank you, Dr. Nunez-Smith, and the White House for the opportunity to speak here today, and thank you all for listening!