Will County sets up vaccination clinics for children

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The Will County Health Department will begin offering the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine to children 5 to 11 years old now that it has been approved under emergency use by the Food and Drug Administration and recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Will County health officials said the vaccines are safe and effective to protect children and their families from COVID-19 and urged residents to listen to their pediatricians, family practitioners and other reputable medical sources rather than social media, which can spread misinformation.

“The COVID-19 vaccine is the best way to protect them from severe complications, keep them in school, and enjoying the activities and people they love spending time with the most — their family and friends,” said Vinita Voss, vaccine equity manager for the health department.

Voss said the virus and its variants can be unpredictable and it is hard to know who will have severe complications. CDC data shows that 30% of children hospitalized with COVID-19 did not have underlying health conditions and were not considered high risk, Voss said.

Parents who are hesitant or have questions about the vaccine should talk with their medical professionals to help ease their worries, Voss said. Their doctors can walk them through the benefits and history of vaccines their children already receive and discuss the potential long-term effects of COVID-19 on children who get the virus, she said.

The vaccine clinic at the county health department, 501 Ella Ave., Joliet, will offer the Pfizer pediatric vaccine Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. The health department’s clinic is for all ages, but there will be stations specifically set up to administer the pediatric vaccine.

Several vaccine clinics are also planned at various schools specifically for the 5 to 11 age group.

Parents can schedule appointments at www.willcountyhealth.org at either the health department’s facility or one of the planned school clinics. The school clinics will not accept walk-ins. All minors must be accompanied by an adult.

Clinics are being planned Nov. 10 at Plainfield North High School; Nov. 11 at Manhattan Junior High School; Nov. 13 at Joliet West High School; Nov. 14 at Bolingbrook High School; Nov. 17 at Fairmont School, Lockport; Nov. 18 at Peotone High School; and Nov. 22 at the Reed Township offices, Braidwood.

Families need to bring the QR code they receive when they schedule the appointment, and health department officials encourage parents to bring only the children being vaccinated.

Health officials said more clinics will be planned in the future and residents can go to the county health department’s website to get an up-to-date list or sign up to receive a weekly newsletter.

The vaccine equity team is also working with community-based organiza

tions to reach those areas that have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19, including Black, Hispanic, immigrant and rural communities. Minority children are three times more likely to be hospitalized than white children, Voss said. Through these partnerships, health officials can have one-on-one and small group conversations to address vaccine hesitancy and educate residents on the safety, efficacy and importance of being vaccinated, Voss said.

The health department is also in the process of planning a clinic for children with special needs.

The pediatric vaccine is administered in a two-dose series taken three weeks apart but has one-third the dose than the vaccine used for adolescents and adults, said Cindy Jackson, director of mass vaccinations for the county health department. Children will also receive the vaccine with a smaller needle.

With the vaccine in place, parents could feel more at ease sending their kids to school, participating in extracurricular activities or seeing family members who are elderly or more at-risk for severe complications from coronavirus, Jackson said.

“I know as a parent of a 12and 16-year-old who were both vaccinated when they were eligible, I felt much more comfortable about my kids in public settings and being around older more compromised family members, like their grandparents,” she said.

Pediatricians, pharmacies and other federally-qualified health centers will also be offering the COVID-19 vaccine for young children.