PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — After the US Food and Drug Administration and the CDC approved COVID vaccines for children as young as 6 months, thousands of providers in Oregon are receiving shipments of the doses.
Doctors say getting your little one the shots now, and not waiting until fall, means they will have the protection by then, as the initial series of shots is spread out over three or four weeks.
Pediatric Associates of the Northwest now has Moderna vaccines for children ages 6 months to five years old. Hundreds of patients have already signed up for Saturday’s shot clinic.
“The more we let cases of COVID pass between people, the more likely we can have variants develop and some variants have proven to be more dangerous than other variants. So, getting the most people vaccinated is going to help the population and help get rid of the pandemic,” Dr. Albert Chaffin, of Pediatric Associates of the Northwest, explained.
Several larger pediatric practices also have doses ready to go for clinics starting this weekend for their patients.
On Thursday, the state health authority is holding a walk-in shot clinic on the Tektronix campus in Beaverton, where doses for adults and older children have been given out. The clinic will be Thursday through Sunday.
On Wednesday, Multnomah County unpacked boxes filled with 1,000 doses of the Moderna vaccine for children 6 months to age 5. But the county told KOIN 6 News it will not administering them right away due to staff training needed.
OHSU says it will post appointment scheduling starting Thursday around noon for their weekend clinics.
Clark County, Washington Public Health also announced as providers get their children’s vaccine supply, for parents to talk to their children’s healthcare provider or use the state’s vaccine locator or Vaccinelocator.org to find where to get the children’s vaccine dose.