The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Health district partners with hospital to vaccinate youths
On Saturday, armed with ice cream and music, the town is preparing to vaccinate up to 1,000 pre-teens at their local clinic, according to New Milford Health Director Lisa Morrissey.
And with the news Monday night that the Pfizer vaccine has been approved for use in 12- to 15-year-olds, the clinic is gearing up for a big weekend.
“I think that things are moving along rather nicely,” Morrissey said of vaccination plans Tuesday.
Having reached out to local officials and school administrations in surrounding areas ahead of the vaccine’s official FDA approval, Morrissey said they already have Saturday appointments pre-scheduled for kids throughout the area. There will also be pre-teen appointments at the John Pettibone Community Center during after-school hours on Tuesday and Wednesday of next week.
As of Tuesday, at least 11 towns were partnering with New Milford, Morrissey said.
Robert Rubbo, director of health at the Torrington Area Health District, said that district doesn’t have the capability to receive the Pfizer vaccine because that requires ultra-cold storage.
However, in partnership with Charlotte Hungerford Hospital, which is part of Hartford Healthcare, the district will be setting up clinics for youths age 12 to 15. The district will be sending this information to the local school districts, to be shared with parents of students who want to be vaccinated, he said.
Rubbo said the district is trying to get as many students vaccinated as
soon as possible, for those that are interested in receiving the vaccine.
He said he is scheduled to have a meeting with the state of Connecticut about this later in the week and that the hospital may set up more than one clinic.
“We need a little bit of time to get all the logistics in place,” he said.
In New Milford, after a generous gift of two expensive, ultra-cold Pfizer freezers— one from an anonymous donor and a portable unit from the state— in March, the clinic there is set to become a major hub for school-age children’s vaccinations.
Pfizer is the only vaccine currently approved for use in people under 18, and Morrissey’s clinic is one of the few in the area that is able to provide it. As such, the town is expecting families from Southbury, Kent, Newtown, Washington, Brookfield and more, Morrissey said.
New Milford also volunteered to order and store Pfizer in their freezers for other districts, to be picked up on the day of the local clinic. Pomperaug and New Fairfield Health Districts have both utilized this option, Morrissey said.
Outside of New Milford’s local clinic, Charlotte Hungerford Hospital, Nuvance Health and Community Health Center-run clinics, and the Danbury Fair mall mass vaccination site are among the other sites that have offered Pfizer.
Among the pharmacy sites, CVS and Walgreens offer Pfizer in Connecticut, based on scheduling options online. Big Y is currently administering Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines to residents 18 and older, according to its website. And while other pharmacies like Rite Aid have offered Pfizer, the federal vaccine locator website suggests many area locations are currently out of stock.
Morrissey said it’s important to offer parents flexibility with scheduling. They’ve allowed those located in and out of town to book appointments directly through the New Milford Health Department or through block scheduling arranged by their own town.
“It’s not a one shot deal with us, so families do have their options,” she said.
With the news that younger kids can now be vaccinated, local officials have also started fielding some questions from anxious parents who are hesitant to vaccinate their kids.
Morrissey said she hears mostly from parents worried about their 12- and 13-year-olds, and less about the 14 to 15 age group. Some parents have voiced concerns that the vaccines might cause infertility and cancer— misinformation which Morrissey works through with them.
“We talk through that, and we talk through the research,” she said.
Two of the health director’s older sons and her nephew have already been vaccinated, and her 14year-old son will be getting vaccinated at the first clinic this weekend.
Morrissey was in the car Tuesday morning, having just dropped off her youngest child, when she spoke about vaccine hesitancy and her own insistence that all her kids get vaccinated once they’re eligible.
“The very first day that my 5-year-old is eligible for that vaccine, he will there in line,” she said.