BOSTON (WHDH) – Parents can start making appointments to get children between the ages of 5 and 11 vaccinated against COVID-19, Gov. Charlie Baker announced Thursday.
Kid-sized doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine cleared two final hurdles Tuesday and the pediatric vaccines have already started arriving in Massachusetts, Baker said during a news conference at Boston Children’s Hospital.
Baker noted that state doesn’t expect any supply issues and that the vaccines will soon be made available at more than 500 locations, ranging from retail pharmacies, primary care practices, regional collaboratives, local boards of health, community health centers, hospital systems, and other state-supported sites that can be found on VaxFinder.mass.gov.
“With this mixed model of providers, nearly every Massachusetts child lives within 30 minutes of a vaccine clinic,” Baker said.
Parents who prefer to have their child vaccinated by their primary care provider should call their provider’s office directly.
“Vaccinating children will reduce the toll of this virus on everyone,” said Dr. Kevin Churchwell, the president of Boston Children’s Hospital. “The availability of the vaccine in younger children offers a tangible opportunity for all of our children to return to more normal daily activities and routines, and that’s critical to their well-being.”
As of right now, only Pfizer’s vaccine is available to kids between the ages of 5 and 11.
Massachusetts leads the nation in vaccine administration, including adolescent vaccination, with over 80 percent of youth ages 12-17 having received at least one dose.
Over 4.7 million individuals in the state are fully vaccinated, with more than 92 percent of all adults having at least one dose.
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