Covid shots for tots start to arrive in Georgia
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PSA, parents: Georgia pediatricians this week have started administering the COVID-19 vaccine for children as young as six months.
- However, many health officials are telling parents to stay tuned as they prepare their doses.
Why it matters: The coronavirus is one of the five leading causes of death in children in the U.S., according to CDC advisers.
Catch up quick: Over the weekend, the CDC OK'd the use of the Moderna and Pfizer COVID vaccines for children at least six months old.
- Pfizer's three-dose series was authorized for kids up to age 4, while Moderna's two-dose regimen got approval for kids up to 5.
Roughly 225 providers — mostly doctors, health departments, and a few independent pharmacies — pre-ordered 39,400 Pfizer dozes and 14,000 Moderna doses.
- The first of two waves of doses were expected to arrive at providers' offices by Monday; the second should arrive this week, 11 Alive reported earlier this month.
Find them: Pediatricians at the Children's Medical Group’s Decatur location started giving shots on Monday, per Fox 5.
- "Our phones have been ringing off the hook," physician Jennifer Shu told Fox 5. "I'm actually helping answer the phones, and parents are just giddy with excitement, because their kids are finally able to get this layer of protection they've been waiting for."
Children's Healthcare of Atlanta has not received its vaccine supply yet, a spokesperson says, "but when we do, we will be offering vaccines to patients under 5 with scheduled appointments in select specialty clinics as well as those who are inpatient."
- Public health departments serving Fulton, DeKalb, and Cobb and Douglas counties expect to release more information in the coming days, spokesperson and officials say.
Children over 18 months of age can get the vaccine at CVS clinics. Walgreens clinics are administering shots to children 3 years and older.
- Only 10% of retail pharmacies in Georgia are expected to administer the vaccines to young children, a DPH spokesperson told 11 Alive.
The bottom line: "The known and potential benefits of the Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines outweigh the known and potential risks in the pediatric populations authorized for use for each vaccine," the FDA said Friday.