Elmo Gets Vaccinated for Covid, as Kids Under 5 Are Now Eligible

With the CDC now recommending Covid-19 vaccines for kids as young as 6 months old, who better to spread the word that everyone's favorite 3 ½-year-old, Elmo?

The diminutive red Muppet, a perpetual preschooler, stars with his dad Louie in a minute-long PSA from Sesame Workshop, the Ad Council and COVID Collaborative's COVID-19 Vaccine Education Initiative. The spot is the latest in a vaccine series featuring the Sesame Street Muppets, first targeting adults and later children 5 and up.

But with kids between 6 months and 5 years old now eligible for Covid shots, Elmo takes center stage. Though actually, his old man does a lot of the talking, too.

Getting parents to innoculate their under-5's may be the most challenging sell yet in a country that never fully embraced vaccines against the global pandemic, now in its third year. New Ad Council research found that 52 percent of parents have not firmly made up their mind either way about getting their child under 5 vaccinated.

Thus, the spot wisely acknowledges that parents may have many questions, and directs them to getvaccineanswers.org.

"We know there is tremendous relief that comes with the authorization of these vaccines for kids under 5, but many questions too," says Lisa Sherman, president and CEO of the Ad Council. "It's important that parents feel informed and confident about what the COVID-19 vaccines mean for their families, and we are proud to work with our partners, medical experts—and of course Elmo—to spread that message. Our work with Sesame Workshop has been invaluable in helping us to connect parents and caregivers with the accurate information they need when deciding to vaccinate their children against COVID-19—an important decision many need to make in advance of the upcoming school season."