Jeff Zentes, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, said Monday that the vaccination program for children ages 5 to 11, launched by the administration of President Joe Biden, will be fully operational starting November 8, according to “The Hill.” .
During a White House briefing, Zenitz said the administration has an adequate supply of Pfizer's vaccine for all 28 million eligible children and is in the process of sending 15 million initial doses to thousands of sites across the country.
According to Zinets, states choose where the administration will send vaccines each week, such as pediatricians' offices and school clinics, and can change the allocation on demand. The federal government also sends vaccines directly to pharmacies and community health centers.
“We will give parents a wide range of options to vaccinate their children and ensure that all children get their vaccinations, including those without primary care physicians or those who are most at risk, all of them will get their vaccinations easily,” Zenz said.
Zentz said the FDA's authorization of a vaccine was a kick-start to begin the process of packing and shipping millions of doses across the country, but that it will take some time before the vaccines reach the sites where they will be administered.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) committee will meet on Tuesday to decide how to use the vaccine, and Zentz said that several million doses will start arriving in doctors' offices and pharmacies over the next few days, so the vaccination process will begin this week, but the program will not be operational fully until next week.
“We have been planning and preparing for this moment and ready to act, awaiting the CDC’s decision, and starting November 8, the vaccination program for children aged 5 to 11 years will be operating at full capacity,” Zenz said.
According to the latest Kaiser Family Foundation survey, 27% of parents who have children ages 5 to 11 will have their children vaccinated right away.
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