CINCINNATI — Children ages 5 to 11 in the state of Ohio can start getting the COVID-19 vaccine today, according to a press release from the Ohio Department of Health.
This comes after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention formally recommended COVID-19 vaccines for kids on Tuesday.
According to the Ohio Department of Health COVID-19 website dashboard, 15 Ohio children under the age of 18 have died due to COVID-19. In addition, 2,057 have been hospitalized. Kentucky and Indianado not list those numbers on their reporting dashboard.
"We are on the threshold of a long-awaited step that brings us closer to getting through this pandemic," ODH Director Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff said in a press release on Wednesday. "We can now better protect these school-aged children from the complications of COVID-19."
Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center has begun vaccinating children at its Avondale campus after receiving their first shipment Tuesday morning. They will expand the service to other locations in the coming days. Click here to learn how to schedule a vaccine at Children's.
CVS Pharmacy announced that parents could begin scheduling vaccine appointments for their kids nationwide at its stores today and at 40 select locations in Ohio. The pharmacy will start giving shots on Sunday, Nov. 7. Parents can sign up for an appointment on the CVS website.
Walgreens are starting vaccinations for this age group this weekend.
Kroger says it is prepared to administer pediatric doses of the Pfizer pediatric COVID-19 vaccine formulated for use in people age 5 to 11 years old. The online scheduling tool will be updated soon to reflect this change, and patients may visit www.kroger.com/covidvaccine [kroger.com] to schedule an appointment.
To make an appointment through UC Health, call 513-584-DOSE (3673), weekdays between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., or visit uchealth.com/getting-your-vaccine.
NKY Health Department plans to start vaccinating this age group Monday at health centers in our four counties: Campbell, Grant, Boone, Kenton.
Health Departments and other clinics across Greater Cincinnati also received their shipment of vaccine doses Tuesday morning.
They came in boxes filled with dry ice and will remain at required temperature until they are needed.
“The more people in a community that are protected, the fewer opportunities for that virus to spread,” said Clermont County Public Health Communications Coordinator Keith Robinson.
Clermont County Public Health says before health departments can administer the vaccines to 5- to 11-year-olds, the Ohio Department of Health must sign off on the CDC approval for emergency use.
“It's still going to be a few days,” said Robinson.
Clermont County received 300 doses. Ten clinics in the county also received doses. Springdale Public Health District says it received 300. Cincinnati Health Department received 300 doses. Hamilton County Public Health received 1,200 doses.
“You know, the numbers at Children’s Hospital for the past six months have just kept going up and up, higher and higher with kids really sick with COVID. So, this is exciting to get us started on this,” said Nurse Christa Easton.
Some health departments will allow walk-ins.
Hamilton County Public Health could start as early as Thursday.
Clermont County Public Health is taking appointments through the Armorvax website.
Pharmacies are also available with the vaccine. However, there are limitations. Some pharmacies will not vaccinate anyone under seven. Some will not vaccinate anyone under the age of nine.
To encourage vaccinations, the state has expanded its Vax-2-School program to those ages 5-to-11.
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