Jae C. Hong / AP
Six-year-old Eric Aviles receives the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine from pharmacist Sylvia Uong at a pediatric vaccine clinic for children ages 5 to 11 set up at Willard Intermediate School in Santa Ana, Calif., Tuesday, Nov. 9, 2021.
Sunday, June 19, 2022 | 12:45 p.m.
The COVID-19 vaccine for infants, toddlers and preschoolers will be made available starting Wednesday through the Southern Nevada Heath District, officials announced today.
The Centers of Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices unanimously decided on Saturday that coronavirus vaccines should be made available to children as young as 6 months. Children under age 5 previously weren’t eligible.
“We are pleased to finally be able to offer the COVID-19 vaccines to help protect our youngest residents,” said Dr. Fermin Leguen, the District Health Officer in a statement. “Families have made extraordinary sacrifices these past few years to protect their children and their most vulnerable members. The availability of the vaccines for younger children is another critical step in our ongoing efforts to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on our community.”
The government has been gearing up for the start of the shots, with millions of doses ordered for distribution to doctors, hospitals and community health clinics around the country. Roughly 18 million kids will be eligible.
“Parents will breathe a sigh of relief knowing these vaccines will very soon be available,” Dr. Jack Resneck, president of the American Medical Association, said in a statement.
Still, it remains to be seen how many will ultimately get the vaccines. Less than a third of children ages 5 to 11 have done so since vaccination opened up to them last November.
Two brands — Pfizer and Moderna — got the green light Friday from the Federal Drug Administration and Saturday from the advisory panel. The vaccines use the same technology but are being offered at different dose sizes and number of shots for the youngest kids.
Pfizer’s vaccine is for 6 months through 4 years. The dose is one-tenth of the adult dose, and three shots are needed. The first two are given three weeks apart, and the last at least two months later.
Moderna’s is two shots, each a quarter of its adult dose, given about four weeks apart for kids 6 months through 5. The FDA also approved a third dose, at least a month after the second shot, for kids with immune conditions that make them more vulnerable to serious illness.
The Health District says 13,868 cases of COVID-19 has been reported in children under the age of 4. There have been four deaths.
Although most children only have mild symptoms, some experience more severe sickness or develop long-term symptoms, the health district said.
“I would encourage parents and guardians to bring their children in to get vaccinated as soon as possible,” said Dr. Cort Lohff, Chief Medical Officer for the health district in a statement. “This is the time of year we start reminding the community about the importance of back-to-school immunizations, and this is one more step parents can take to help ensure their children have a healthier start to the school year.”
Health District COVID-19 clinic location information is available at www.snhd.info/covid-vaccine.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
