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Kansas City Today

Will Kansas City parents vaccinate their kids?

By Nomin Ujiyediin,
Byron J. Love
Published November 10, 2021 at 4:00 AM CST
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An illustration showing the Kansas City skyline with the words "Kansas City Today"

Even though the COVID-19 vaccine is available, and safe, for children ages 5-11, many parents might be hesitant to get their kids vaccinated. A Kansas City statistician explains why. Plus, get updates on two big court cases taking place in Kansas City this week.

Vaccine hesitancy has been one barrier to the United States achieving herd immunity from COVID-19. Now that the COVID vaccine is safe and available for children ages 5-11, the question arises of how many parents will get their kids vaccinated.

Alex Francisco completed his Ph.D. dissertation on vaccine hesitancy in parents, and now works as a statistician with the Kansas City Health Department. He joins to discuss why parents might be more reluctant to get their kids vaccinated, even if they’re vaccinated themselves.

And we'll get you up to speed on two big court cases taking place this week in Kansas City: the innocence hearing of Kevin Strickland and the trial of Kansas City Police detective Eric J. DeValkenaere.

Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR onTwitter andFacebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and edited by Gabe Rosenberg & Lisa Rodriguez

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate

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Kansas City Today Kansas City Missouri (KCMO)Kansas City Kansas (KCK)vaccinesCoronaviruschildrenKevin Strickland
Nomin Ujiyediin
As a newscaster and a host of a daily news podcast, I want to deliver the most important and interesting news of the day in an engaging and easily understandable way. No matter where you live in the metro or what you’re interested in, I want you to learn something from each newscast or podcast – and maybe even give you something to talk about at the dinner table.
See stories by Nomin Ujiyediin
Byron J. Love
As an on-demand producer, I am focused on using my skills and experiences across multiple digital applications, platforms and media fields to create community focused audio, video and on-demand products for KCUR Studios. The media that I produce aims to inform, entertain and connect with the Kansas City metro area as we continue to learn from each other. Email me at byronlove@kcur.org.
See stories by Byron J. Love
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