COVID vaccine available for kids under 5, but good luck finding it in St. Joseph County
SOUTH BEND — Michiana-area parents who have been eager to get their young children vaccinated against COVID-19 might have to wait a little bit longer.
The Indiana Department of Health announced Tuesday that the vaccine is available for those 6 months to 5 years old and directed parents online to check for locations. But, employees with some sites on the list contacted by The Tribune say they don't have the vaccine or are only offering it to "established patients."
As of Wednesday, Premier Pediatrics of Indiana in Granger was the only site in the county that The Tribune could confirm currently has the vaccine available for both patients and non-patients.
As of Friday, HealthLinc had the Pfizer vaccine available for any kids 6 months and older at its three Michiana locations: HealthLinc Centennial, HealthLinc Mishawaka and HealthLinc Southeast.
Issues across Indiana: COVID-19 vaccine hard to find for littlest kids as state's ourshot site is slow to update
Where are these vaccines shown as available?
As of Tuesday evening, four sites in St. Joseph County were listed as offering the Pfizer vaccine for the youngest age group:
Dr. Toper 6301 University Commons Suite 320, South Bend, 574-271-7337
Dr. Travis Casper 2235 Cleveland Road, South Bend, 574-647-4530
Family Medicine of South Bend 6301 University Commons Suite 210, South Bend, 574-234-4016
South Bend Clinic Pediatrics 211 N. Eddy St., South Bend, 574-234-8161
South Bend Clinic Pediatrics on Eddy Street appears on the state's map as having the Pfizer vaccine for young children. But a clinic employee said it does not have the vaccine in — and won't get it for a couple of weeks. And even when the clinic gets a vaccine shipment in, it will only offer vaccinations to its patients.
And five sites in the county are listed as having both Pfizer and Moderna for kids:
BMG Ireland Road 1815 E. Ireland Road, South Bend, 574-647-1700
Dr. David Bertoncini 4440 Portage Ave., South Bend, 574-204-6200
Premier Pediatrics of Indiana 229 Florence Ave., Granger, 574-281-0033
Primary Care Partners of South Bend 300 S. Saint Louis Blvd. Suite 204, South Bend, 574-251-1200
South Bend Clinic Granger Family Medicine and Pediatrics 52500 Fir Road, Granger, 574-271-0700
Primary Care Partners has both Pfizer and Moderna vaccines in stock for its established patients while Premier Pediatrics is offering the vaccine to anyone, as of Wednesday morning. The status of vaccine availability at the other locations wasn't immediately available.
State encourages appointments for vaccine shot
Originally, the health department said walk-in appointments were available at most vaccine sites across the state, but later reversed course and encouraged parents to call to check appointment requirements and vaccine stock at individual locations.
"Although some sites may be able to accommodate walk-ins, many sites, including pharmacies and hospitals, indicated Tuesday afternoon that they are requiring appointments due to limited initial supplies of vaccine," a Tuesday afternoon update from IDOH said.
Vaccines for the state's youngest members will be increasingly available as the rollout continues, according to the IDOH. Vaccine sites can be found online and by calling 211 for assistance.
More: Mom survived COVID depression in this Marshall County park. Now reviving it as manager.
The state health department is also working with an outside vendor to update its online vaccine site map, ourshot.in.gov, health officials said in the Tuesday release.
Tuesday afternoon, St. Joseph County reported a vaccination rate of 55.7% and 113.6 COVID cases per 100,000 people in the past seven days, placing it in the red category for high risk and transmission.
Email Alysa Guffey at aguffey1@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @AlysaGuffeyNews.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: COVID-19 vaccine approved for kids under 5 but hard to find in St. Joe
