Delaware News

DPH Advises Vaccine Providers to Offer Pfizer COVID-19 Vaccine for Children 5 to 11 Years of Age

Delaware Health and Social Services | Division of Public Health | Date Posted: Wednesday, November 3, 2021


Pfizer vaccine for 5-11

DOVER (NOV. 3, 2021) – The Delaware Division of Public Health (DPH) today announced that Delaware’s vaccine providers can begin administering the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 pediatric vaccine to children ages 5 to 11.

Today’s announcement comes after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last week gave its approval to expand Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) to allow for the Pfizer vaccine to be administered to children in this age group. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) met Tuesday and agreed with the FDA findings. CDC Director Dr. Rochelle P. Walensky endorsed the advisory committee’s recommendations later that evening.

“This is very exciting news for Delaware in the ongoing fight against COVID,” said DPH Director Dr. Karyl Rattay. “We have been waiting for the day when we could give our younger school-aged children this very effective layer of protection and let them get back to a more normal childhood. Parents are naturally going to be concerned about rare adverse reactions. What we know is the benefits far outweigh the extremely rare chance of a bad reaction. If my children were in this age group, I would absolutely vaccinate them right away.”

The Pfizer vaccine dose has been reduced for children under 12. During clinical trials nationwide involving more than 3,000 children ages 5-11, the vaccine was found to be more than 90% protective against developing symptomatic COVID-19.  No severe vaccine-related side effects such as myocarditis or severe allergic reactions were identified. Side effects were found to be similar to, or fewer than, those experienced by adults and included sore arms, fatigue, headaches, muscle pain, chills, and low-grade fevers lasting a day or two.

There will be adequate supply of vaccine to accommodate those children who qualify. There are approximately 77,500 children in this age group in Delaware.

Parents or guardians are encouraged to first contact their child’s pediatrician to see if they are administering the vaccine. Vaccines will also be available at Federally Qualified Health Centers (for patients; Westside Family Healthcare will offer vaccinations to non-patients as well), and standing DPH Vaccine sites:

  • Blue Hen Corporate Center: 655 S. Bay Road, Dover, DE 19901
  • Georgetown Plaza: 19 Georgetown Plaza, Georgetown, DE 19947
  • Canby Park: 1920 Maryland Ave., Wilmington, DE 19805
  • University Plaza, 256 Chapman Road, Suite 100, Newark, DE 19702

Additionally, vaccines will be available to patients of pediatric health care providers and a limited number of large chain pharmacies initially until vaccine supply opens up. DPH recommends parents check pharmacy websites for scheduling options and availability before going.

Written parental consent is required for people younger than 18, but either a parent or other adult may attend with the child. Those with concerns should speak to their family physician.

For a complete list of locations where vaccines are available, visit de.gov/getmyvaccine.

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DPH Advises Vaccine Providers to Offer Pfizer COVID-19 Vaccine for Children 5 to 11 Years of Age

Delaware Health and Social Services | Division of Public Health | Date Posted: Wednesday, November 3, 2021


Pfizer vaccine for 5-11

DOVER (NOV. 3, 2021) – The Delaware Division of Public Health (DPH) today announced that Delaware’s vaccine providers can begin administering the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 pediatric vaccine to children ages 5 to 11.

Today’s announcement comes after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last week gave its approval to expand Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) to allow for the Pfizer vaccine to be administered to children in this age group. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) met Tuesday and agreed with the FDA findings. CDC Director Dr. Rochelle P. Walensky endorsed the advisory committee’s recommendations later that evening.

“This is very exciting news for Delaware in the ongoing fight against COVID,” said DPH Director Dr. Karyl Rattay. “We have been waiting for the day when we could give our younger school-aged children this very effective layer of protection and let them get back to a more normal childhood. Parents are naturally going to be concerned about rare adverse reactions. What we know is the benefits far outweigh the extremely rare chance of a bad reaction. If my children were in this age group, I would absolutely vaccinate them right away.”

The Pfizer vaccine dose has been reduced for children under 12. During clinical trials nationwide involving more than 3,000 children ages 5-11, the vaccine was found to be more than 90% protective against developing symptomatic COVID-19.  No severe vaccine-related side effects such as myocarditis or severe allergic reactions were identified. Side effects were found to be similar to, or fewer than, those experienced by adults and included sore arms, fatigue, headaches, muscle pain, chills, and low-grade fevers lasting a day or two.

There will be adequate supply of vaccine to accommodate those children who qualify. There are approximately 77,500 children in this age group in Delaware.

Parents or guardians are encouraged to first contact their child’s pediatrician to see if they are administering the vaccine. Vaccines will also be available at Federally Qualified Health Centers (for patients; Westside Family Healthcare will offer vaccinations to non-patients as well), and standing DPH Vaccine sites:

  • Blue Hen Corporate Center: 655 S. Bay Road, Dover, DE 19901
  • Georgetown Plaza: 19 Georgetown Plaza, Georgetown, DE 19947
  • Canby Park: 1920 Maryland Ave., Wilmington, DE 19805
  • University Plaza, 256 Chapman Road, Suite 100, Newark, DE 19702

Additionally, vaccines will be available to patients of pediatric health care providers and a limited number of large chain pharmacies initially until vaccine supply opens up. DPH recommends parents check pharmacy websites for scheduling options and availability before going.

Written parental consent is required for people younger than 18, but either a parent or other adult may attend with the child. Those with concerns should speak to their family physician.

For a complete list of locations where vaccines are available, visit de.gov/getmyvaccine.

image_printPrint

Related Topics:  , , , , , , ,


Graphic that represents delaware news on a mobile phone

Keep up to date by receiving a daily digest email, around noon, of current news release posts from state agencies on news.delaware.gov.

Here you can subscribe to future news updates.