About 900,000 children have received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, White House announces

During a White House Press Briefing, the White House Coronavirus Response Coordinator estimated that 900,000 children aged 5-11 had received the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine.

Since the Food and Drug Administration authorized the Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use in children aged 5-11 at the end of last month, around 900,000 children have now received their first dose. Parents are being encouraged to schedule appointments to get their children vaccinated.

On Wednesday morning, Jeffrey Zients announced that, “By the end of the day today, we estimate that over 900,000 kids ages 5 through 11 will have already gotten their first shot. And through pharmacies alone, 700,000 additional appointments are already on the calendar at local pharmacies.”

He said that the vaccinations have been performed at 20,000 locations throughout the U.S. including “pediatricians and family doctors’ offices, pharmacies, children’s hospitals, community health centers, rural health clinics, and school-based clinics”.

The Biden administration announced last month before the vaccine was authorized that they had acquired enough doses to fully vaccinate the U.S.’s 28 million 5-11 year olds. Although children are less likely to experience severe cases of Covid-19, it is still possible and a portion of them will have long-term respiratory issues from the virus. The vaccine for children is ⅓ of the dose of that of adults, which is supposed to prevent extreme side effects.