7,500 Vaccines For 5-11 Years Old Are On The Way To Sonoma County: What To Know

SONOMA COUNTY, CA — With the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine now approved by federal and state officials for children 5-11 years old, Sonoma County announced plans Thursday to begin vaccinating the roughly 37,000 children in this age range through primary care physicians, pharmacies and county-sponsored, school-based clinics.

Parents who have health care coverage are encouraged to reach out to their pediatrician or local pharmacy to find a vaccination appointment for their children as soon as possible. The county is working with the Sonoma County Office of Education to set up clinics targeted to select school sites with a focus on equity, according to a county news release.

“Parents have been waiting for nearly a year to be able to get their younger children vaccinated,” said Dr. Sundari Mase, the county’s public health officer. “The pediatric vaccine has shown to be safe and effective in preventing the worst outcomes from COVID. This is yet another critical tool that we have to protect more of our population from the virus.”

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Friday authorized the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for children in the 5-11 age group. On Tuesday, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also cleared the age group to get vaccinated, and on Wednesday, the Western States Scientific Safety Review Workgroup followed suit.

Sonoma County expects to receive roughly 7,500 doses this week of the pediatric vaccine, which is 10 micrograms or one-third of the dosage used for people 12 and older.

Vaccination clinics are being set up at designated schools to serve people who do not have convenient or affordable access to health care providers, with priority given to schools in areas that have been historically impacted with high rates of coronavirus and low vaccination rates.

Priority is also being given to areas with large numbers of English-language learners and free- or reduced-lunch recipients. Doses for teens and adults who live in these neighborhoods and/or attend these schools will be available at the clinics, as will pediatric doses formulated specifically for children aged 5 to 11.

Beginning the week of Nov. 8, vaccination clinics are scheduled at the following schools for students who attend the schools and their families:

• Guerneville Elementary School in Guerneville, Nov. 9, 1:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
• Jefferson Elementary School in Cloverdale, Nov. 9, 3:00 p.m. to 6 p.m.
• Harmony Elementary School in Occidental, Nov. 10, 3 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
• McDowell Elementary School in Petaluma, Nov. 10, 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
• Roseland Elementary School in Santa Rosa, Nov. 12, 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
• Healdsburg Elementary School - Fitch Mountain in Healdsburg, Nov. 12, 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.
• Dunbar Elementary School in Sonoma, Nov. 12, 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.
• James Monroe Elementary School in Santa Rosa, Nov. 13, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• Cali Calmecac Language Academy in Windsor, Nov. 13, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Information on school-based clinics as well as consent forms in English and Spanish is available on the Sonoma County Office of Education website.

Although all residents ages 5 and older are now eligible to be vaccinated, parents are being encouraged to be patient as supplies and appointments may be in short supply in the next few weeks, county officials said Thursday. More information is available through the county’s vaccine clinic page or through the myturn.ca.gov website.

The Sonoma County Office of Education has a goal to vaccinate 25 percent of the 37,000 children in Sonoma County aged 5 to 11 by Dec. 1, 50 percent by Jan. 31, 2022, and 70 percent by Feb. 28, 2022.

Sonoma County health and education leaders are launching an initiative to answer parents’ questions about the vaccine and address their concerns. The first live-streamed webinar is planned for 5 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 16, via the county’s Facebook and YouTube pages. A similar informational webinar will be held in Spanish at 5 p.m. the following day, Wednesday, Nov. 17. Parents and children are invited to submit their questions for these webinars in advance by emailing them to publicaffairs@sonoma-county.org.