BOSTON (WHDH) - Children in Massachusetts ages 12 to 15 years old can roll up their sleeves beginning Thursday to get vaccinated against the coronavirus.
This comes after U.S. health advisers endorsed use of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine in kids as young as 12 on Wednesday.
Some students in the state say they are looking forward to getting vaccinated.
“I was really excited because I want to get the vaccine so school can be back to normal next year,” one girl said.
Needham schools has scheduled two vaccine clinics for its students over the next two weeks, with about 2,600 students in town now eligible to get vaccinated.
Superintendent Daniel Gutekanst says the vaccine is not currently required for students but that he encourages families to since their child up for the clinic.
“Everything we’ve heard so far is that the vaccines are safe,” he said. “It’s appropriate now to have students age 12 years and up get vaccinated so that we can stay in school.”
Local school leaders say they will continue to follow state and federal guidelines to keep students and staff safe.
“We’re talking about conditions where adults and children are working together very closely, interacting with one another, and my goal all year has been to make sure the school environment is healthy and safe for everyone,” Gutekanst said.
In the Commonwealth, children 12 to 17 years old can only get the Pfizer vaccine.
There’s a consent form for parents or guardians to sign on the state’s website.
Cambridge-based Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel said Wednesday that they plan to go to the FDA for approval to administer their vaccine to adolescents 12 to 17 years old within the next few weeks.
“The Moderna vaccine in the 12 to 17 years old age range has a 96 percent efficacy,” he said. “The safety profile is like what we saw for the adults, and we’re working with the FDA to get the vaccine authorized as soon as we can.”
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