President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris in a press release on Wednesday, Oct. 20 announced a plan to vaccinate 28 million American children ages 5-11.
The administration felt it had obtained enough information on the COVID-19 vaccines to “support” vaccinating the children, the press release reads. The vaccines are set to be distributed once approved by the Food and Drug Administration and recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for 5-11-year-olds will be a dose and formula specifically for this age group,” the release read. “The vaccine will have packaging available in smaller configurations that will make it easier for physicians’ offices and other smaller, community-based providers to offer the vaccine to kids and their families.”
The vaccines for the children will be available at more than 25,000 pediatric and primary care provider sites, in addition to various pharmacies, community health centers and schools. To help families make informed decisions on vaccinating their children, Health and Human Services will conduct a national public education campaign to reach parents and guardians with “accurate and culturally-responsive information” about the vaccines and the risks COVID-19 poses to children.
According to the Biden administration, millions of American adolescents have already received the vaccine and the results have been promising.
“We know vaccines work,” the release read. “Fully vaccinated individuals are 10 times less likely to be hospitalized with COVID-19 and have a high degree of protection, including against the Delta variant. The consequences of a pediatric COVID-19 case can be serious and potentially last months.”
As of Oct. 20, two out of three eligible Americans, totaling to 189 million citizens, have been fully vaccinated, an increase from the two million Americans who were vaccinated at the time Biden officially took office in January 2021.
