Parents and caregivers of Pima County’s youngest residents will now be able to start a COVID-19 shot series here following federal approval for both Pfizer and Moderna for those 6 months to 5 years old.
Shots will be available starting Tuesday, June 21, at both county clinics and some pediatricians’ offices. The county has about 2,000 doses arriving so far, and after this week that will increase.
About 20% to 25% of parents nationwide are expected to vaccinate their babies and young children right away, the Kaiser Family Foundation reports.
Overall, the county — like many parts of the country — is seeing infections boom right now, although hospitalizations are stable and not surging.
“We are in an accelerated transmission right now,†said Dr. Theresa Cullen, the county’s health director, adding the shots for the young ones could help offset that over time. “Anything we can do to mitigate that is a considered a win for the health department.â€
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COVID-19 transmission in the county is believed to be up to five times higher than what’s currently being reported, Cullen said, with an estimated 500 to 1,000 cases per 100,000 residents right now.
Being able to immunize every age group could help the current pandemic become endemic, meaning the disease will still be here but will not be as significant or as much of a disruption to daily life. However, Cullen said whether that happens depends on how well communities do with immunizing this youngest set.
“It is still a wait-and-see game,†she said. It also remains to be seen, depending on what happens with the disease going forward, whether shots for COVID-19 will become part of a child’s recommended vaccine regimen.
Cullen said the vaccine for this age group has been talked about for months but was delayed in order to ensure its safety.
“The data indicates that this is a safe vaccine and that there have been very few significant side effects associated with it,†she said.
The children who are immunized in this youngest set will either get two doses of Pfizer or three of Moderna. So far in Pima County, about 53% of those aged 5 to 9 are immunized here.
In addition to county clinics and pediatricians’ offices, some pharmacies will eventually start offering the shot to this age group. The county is still running 20 to 30 mobile clinics in the community. For more information on where to find the shot, visit .
“You will need to check with your own pediatrician to see if it’s available,†she said. Pharmacies are not expected to start offering the shot to this age group right away, and some pharmacies will not offer the shot to children under 3. Anyone interested in getting the shot series for their child through a pharmacy should call to find out more details.
If there is a big rush this week, some parents and caregivers may have to wait until next week to get their little ones the first shot.
Within three to four weeks after the series is complete, Cullen said, the child should be well-protected against significant sickness. During the omicron surge, she said, the number of children admitted to the hospital, which means serious illness, doubled nationwide.
