I think so, but note that the NPR piece you linked to is based on obsolete pre-Delta data in the United States and by all accounts hospitals are seeing more sick kids than they did last year (some combination of known greater virulence and what the CDC classes as probable greater severity).
The best argument for treating COVID more seriously is that we have a better understanding of influenza’s long-term effects. In both cases, however, I’d argue that it makes sense to require vaccination simply to reduce the impact on childcare and education: even if dying from the flu is relatively low-risk, it’s stressful and disruptive when it rips through a class and vaccination is quite cheap in comparison.
