With children eligible to receive COVID vaccine, Whatcom health department to host clinic
After state and federal health officials authorized the use of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines in children between 5 and 11 years old, the Whatcom County Health Department announced it will host a vaccination clinic specifically for that age group Friday.
The clinic will be held from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 5, at the Old Lynden Middle School cafeteria (516 Main St., Lynden), according to a health department news release Wednesday, Nov. 3, and it will be open to all Whatcom County residents between ages 5 and 11.
There are a limited number of pediatric appointments, according to the release, and pre-registration is required online after noon on Thursday, Nov. 4, at prepmod.doh.wa.gov. Walk-ins will not be accepted, but appointments can also be made by calling 360-778-6075.
The pediatric vaccine clinic will operate alongside a previously scheduled clinic for adults at the same location.
“There are just under 18,000 children in Whatcom County who are now eligible for vaccination, and we know many parents are eager to have their children vaccinated,” Whatcom County Health Director Erika Lautenbach said in the release. “While vaccine providers in our county are already stretched with giving booster doses and flu shots, the Health Department had enough space at an existing clinic to also offer doses for kids.
“I appreciate our nursing team for their planning and ability to provide our community with these vaccines so quickly.”
Early opportunities to get pediatric doses of the vaccine will be limited, due to tight supply and a smaller number of providers who are able to vaccinate younger residents, according to the release.
Pfizer’s pediatric dose sizes are one-third that of doses for teens and adults and are administered in a two-dose series, three weeks apart, according to the release.
“Please remember that this is the first week that pediatric doses are available. This clinic will not be the only opportunity for 5- to 11-year-olds to get immunized against COVID-19,” Lautenbach said. “You may need to wait a few weeks to get a vaccine appointment with your preferred provider.”
In addition to Friday’s clinic in Lynden, there are two other confirmed vaccine providers in Whatcom County over the next couple of days, according to the release:
▪ PeaceHealth will host pediatric-only clinics from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Nov. 13 and Nov. 20 at 4545 Cordata Parkway in Bellingham. Appointments are required and can be made at 833-375-0285.
▪ Nooksack Valley Drug (208 E. Main St., Everson) will also have pediatric vaccines. Visit nooksackvalleydrug.com to make an appointment.
Additional clinics will be listed at whatcomcounty.us/covidvaccine as they are scheduled, according to the release. To find pediatric does through the Vaccine Locator, search for a fourth vaccine type “Pfizer-BioNTech Pediatric, ages 5-11.”
“We expect initial demand to be high, so we appreciate your patience as more vaccine providers are approved for this age group and the vaccine supply specific to 5- to 11-year olds increases.”
Since Sept. 5, 652 Whatcom County residents 11 years old and younger have been diagnosed with COVID-19, according to The Bellingham Herald’s analysis of the Washington State Department of Health’s latest age-range data released Monday, Nov. 1. That represents approximately 21% of the 3,118 cases in the county since then.
Based on the county health department’s estimation of approximately 18,000 residents 11 and younger in the county, that means that there have been approximately 3,622 cases per 100,000 residents in that age group since Sept. 5. That more than triples the approximately 1,190 cases per 100,000 residents for all other age groups combined, The Herald’s analysis found.
The Washington State Department of Health announced Wednesday in another release that the state had officially expanded eligibility to children 5-11 following the recommendations from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices and the Western States Scientific Safety Review Workgroup.
After reviewing data, those groups found the vaccine to be “safe and more than 90% effective in preventing COVID-19 in younger children,” the state news release reported.
“As a father and as a physician, I have been eagerly awaiting the day I can get my children vaccinated,” Secretary of Health Dr. Umair A. Shah said in the state release. “There are nearly 680,000 kids ages 5 to 11 in Washington. Vaccinating this younger age group will help protect them, keep students in the classroom, and bring us one step closer to ending this pandemic.”
Whatcom County has not had any deaths in anybody under the age of 30, according to the most recent data released by the Whatcom County Health Department.
While most children get milder cases of COVID-19, the CDC has reported that more than 650 children under the age of 18 have died of COVID-19 nationally.
“This is incredible news and, as a pediatrician, I am thrilled younger children are now eligible to get immunized against COVID-19,” Chief Science Officer Dr. Tao Sheng Kwan-Gett said in the state’s release. “It is wonderful to think that families can take advantage of vaccination for both young and old to more safely gather during the upcoming holidays.”
Have vaccine questions?
The Whatcom County Health Department put together a page to answer parents’ questions about the safety of getting children vaccinated, difference between adult and pediatric vaccines, side effects in kids, why it’s important to get kids vaccinated and where kids can get vaccinated at whatcomcounty.us/civicalerts.aspx?AID=2932.
