Doctors are wasting no time in getting shots into younger kids’ arms, after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director gave the go-ahead Tuesday night for kids ages 5 to 11 to get the shots.
“I’m feeling really nervous,” confided 8-year-old Journey Arnold, while waiting for her shot at Children’s National Anacostia on Wednesday morning. “I feel like… the vaccine is going to hurt.”
But she got the shot, along with 10-year-old brother, Jaden, without incident.
Their dad, James, a D.C. firefighter, said, “Getting them one step closer toward being fully vaccinated and hopefully trying to prevent them from obviously catching COVID, it feels good.”
Aiden Lewis, 10, was also among the first younger kids to get the vaccine, after mom Aishia Hines got a heads-up from his primary care doctor.
“When she called me, I was so excited to make the appointment,” she said. Her son was excited to get the shot, too, she said. “He was like, ‘What prize do you get for being one of the first ones?’” Hines said.
Children’s said it will offer thousands of the shots to kids ages 5 to 11 in the coming weeks.
Dr. Jessica Nash with Children’s adds that other primary care sites and local pharmacies will also be giving out the vaccine: “So we just say wherever you can get your earliest appointment and get in, that’s where you should go.”
A full list of where to find vaccination sites for children is available online.
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