How to sign up for COVID vaccine for kids ages 5 to 11
It’s your turn now, Indiana schoolchildren.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has given the final nod to pediatric doses of the COVID-19 vaccine and parents are making appointments to have their children vaccinated at pharmacies and doctors' offices across the state.
Starting at 8 a.m. Thursday, parents will be able to sign up on the state website to get the vaccine at one of many sites across Indiana, health officials said in a press release Wednesday morning.
For Central Indiana parents eager to get their child vaccinated, pediatric doses will be available on a walk-in basis at the Indiana Department of Health's mass vaccination clinic at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, 4551 W. 16th St., from 4 to 8 p.m. today, state health officials said.
The Marion County Public Health Department said Wednesday it anticipated offering the PfizerBioNTech COVID-19 vaccine to children at its clinics starting Thursday.
CVS and Walgreens have also started scheduling appointments starting this weekend on their sites.
While many clinics have been offering vaccines on a walk-in basis in recent months, state health officials said in a release Wednesday that parents might want to schedule an appointment or call ahead.
"Pediatric vaccine supplies may be limited initially as shipments arrive on a staggered basis," the release said.
Where can kids get the vaccine?
Last week state health officials said there would be more than 1,300 sites across Indiana where children could be vaccinated. Each of the state’s 92 counties will have at least one site, where people can get the vaccine.
More: COVID vaccinations for kids 5 -11 could start this week. What Hoosier parents should know.
Some doctors’ offices, hospitals, and pharmacies also will offer the vaccine. State health officials said they expected to receive an initial 200,000 doses earlier this week, which would likely meet the early demand for the shot. About 600,000 children in this age group live in Indiana.
The Indiana Department of Health extended its mass vaccination and testing clinic at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway through Nov. 20 to provide another location where vaccine will be given.
While some parents have been eagerly awaiting the arrival of the vaccine for children, it remains to be seen just how many families opt for vaccination.
Fewer than 58% of the state’s eligible population has opted for vaccination. Teens ages 12 to 15 are the least vaccinated age group, with only 35.4% fully vaccinated, according to the state’s vaccine dashboard.
More: Some Indianapolis residents eligible for free at-home rapid COVID-19 tests
The state has been prepared to see vaccine eligibility extend to the next age group for weeks, allowing people online to click on “people younger than 12 years old.” However, as of Wednesday morning, clicking on that would just lead to a pop-up message saying that group was yet to be eligible.
How many doses do kids need?
Just like adults, children will need to have two doses of vaccine three weeks or more apart to be considered fully vaccinated. However, their doses will be one third the size of that their parents received.
The lower dose does not reflect the difference in weight between an adult and a child but the fact that children have far more robust immune systems than adults, experts say. The smaller dose seems to work as well for children, then, and lessens the risk of side effects, such as fever, body aches, and soreness at the injection site.
While some vaccines are required to attend school, as recently as last week Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb said there were no plans to impose such a mandate for the COVID-19 vaccine.
To register for the COVID-19 vaccine, visit ourshot.in.gov or call 211.
Contact IndyStar reporter Shari Rudavsky at shari.rudavsky@indystar.com. Follow her on Facebook and on Twitter: @srudavsky.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: COVID vaccine available soon in Indiana to children ages 5 to 11
