NJ Kids COVID Vaccine Could Be Ready As Soon As Wednesday, Officials Say

NEW JERSEY — With the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) expected to approve emergency use of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5 to 11 years old later this week, New Jersey will be ready to vaccinate children the moment they get the green light, state officials said on Monday.

The CDC may approve the pediatric vaccine as soon as Tuesday morning, in which case the state would be ready to roll it out Wednesday morning, New Jersey Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli said.

This would include school-endorsed vaccination clinics, officials said during a news conference Monday afternoon.

"Opening up eligibility for our younger kids can be an absolute game changer in our fight against COVID, especially in making our schools safer places and enhancing protection for our families and communities," Gov. Phil Murphy said.

And with 560,000 children between the ages of 5 and 11 in the Garden State, Department of Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli said protecting that age group helps further protect everyone else.

The CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices was scheduled to meet on Tuesday to review the data about the vaccine, which clinical trials of more than 3,000 children have found to be more than 90 percent effective, officials said. The immune response is comparable to that found in the 16- to 25-year-old age group, according to officials. CDC approval may come by the end of the week.

The state has received 51 requests for school-endorsed vaccination events in 14 counties since Oct. 21, Persichilli said.

"We have ordered 203,800 doses, and more than 230 sites will receive those doses," Persichilli said. "The department has been in daily communication with vaccination providers, helping them to prepare for this next step."

In New Jersey, sites in all 21 counties would receive the vaccine for ages 5 to 11. These sites include:

• 65 primary care practices, including pediatricians;
• 40 independent pharmacies and 18 chain pharmacies;
• 37 county and local sites;
• 35 acute care hospitals;
• 27 federally qualified health centers;
• Urgent cares;
• University sites; and
• The Gloucester County megasite.

"We know that parents have concerns and want to do what's best for their children," Persichilli said. "We also know that COVID does affect children. While case rates are declining across the state and the nation, younger children are now the predominant positive cases."

These concerns include the speed with which the trials were conducted, but State Medical Examiner Dr. Edward Lifshitz called that a "tribute to the scientists working on the vaccine who conducted years of research, and the volunteers who participated in the trials."

"While nothing is 100 percent without risk, these are clearly safe vaccines," Lifshitz said. "There's nothing to suggest they're any riskier in this age group than any other age group."

While children haven't been impacted by the pandemic the way adults have, COVID-19 is still among the top 10 causes of pediatric deaths, Lifshitz said. He said any risk from the vaccine is lower than the risk of the coronavirus itself.

Parents should discuss any questions they have with their doctor or pediatrician, Persichilli advised, adding they want children to be able to remain in their classrooms this year, as long as it can be done safely. Last week, the state health department reported that COVID-19 numbers in schools and hospitals are dropping. Read more here: COVID Outbreak Numbers In NJ Schools: The Latest Data

"The best way to ensure that that continues is to have as many individuals as possible vaccinated," Persichilli said.

The doses administered to children ages 5 to 11 would be a third of that which is administered to those ages 12-and-up. Like adults, they would receive two doses over a span of three weeks.

Side effects have been found to be mild, and disappear in one or two days, officials said. These side effects, which generally occurred after the second dose, include sore arm with redness and swelling, fatigue, headache, muscle or joint pains, chills, fever, swollen lymph nodes, nausea and decreased appetite.

Last week, Moderna reported positive results for its COVID-19 vaccine in children ages 6 to 11. It has submitted its findings for review. Read more here: COVID-19 Vaccine May Soon Be Available For NJ Kids 5+