COVID-19 vaccines for youngest kids on the way

Parents can now book appointments for COVID-19 vaccines that are finally available for children under the age of 5.

What's happening: Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced several city-run locations that will start administering shots as early as Saturday.

• The Pfizer vaccine is a course of three pediatric doses available for kids from 6 months to 4 years old.
• The full Moderna vaccination is just two doses for kids from 6 months to 5 years old.

By the numbers: Chicago expects to get more than 15,000 doses of each vaccine.

• Chicago Department of Public Health Commissioner Allison Arwady says future shipments will be based on demand.
• There are almost 170,000 kids under 5 in the city alone.

State of play: A national Kaiser poll found that only 18% of parents of children under age 5 say they will vaccinate their children right away.

• Just 47% of Chicago kids ages 5-11 got the full vaccine.

How it works: Make appointments through the city, your pediatrician's office, Walgreens or CVS.

• The city has a vaccination finder, as does the federal government.

Be smart: The CDC says that vaccination symptoms for children have been minor. But as with adult doses, there is some risk of fatigue and fever.

Good news: Cook County recently went from "high" to "medium" risk as COVID cases have fallen.