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Minnesota’s Plan to Vaccinate 5 – 11 Year Old Following FDA Advisory

Minnesota’s Plan to Vaccinate 5 – 11 Year Old Following FDA Advisory

I wanted to start off by thanking you for your continued help in communicating with Minnesotans about the COVID-19 vaccine. We are grateful for your partnership.

As you know, yesterday the FDA’s vaccine advisory committee voted to recommend the authorization of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for use in children ages 5-11. This means we are closer to protecting children from COVID-19 through vaccination!

Next, the FDA will have to formally accept this recommendation and then CDC’s vaccine advisory committee will meet to provide the recommendations doctors and other health care providers need before they start vaccinating. ACIP is scheduled to meet November 2-3.

Once final recommendations are released, Minnesota will be able to vaccinate eligible children!

As we wait for official guidance and the green light to begin vaccinating from the CDC, the Department of Health and providers around the state – hospitals, clinics, local public health, Tribal health agencies, pharmacies, school located clinics and state-run community clinics– are preparing to administer vaccines to our children as quickly as possible. The state’s main goal is to ensure that the vaccine is widely, equitably, and efficiently available to all Minnesotans ages 5-11.
In response to community feedback and to meet families where they are, based on feedback from you we have put together a statewide vaccination plan that offers a variety of locations and experiences to get kids their shots. To do that, we are activating a network of 1,100 providers around Minnesota to be ready to give shots to our kids, including:
∙ More than 530 primary care providers, including pediatric and family medicine clinics, primary care providers, federally qualified health centers, local public health agencies, tribal health agencies, and Indian Health Service locations.
∙ More than 600 pharmacies are actively planning to provide vaccine to children 5-11 years old in in some or all of their locations, based of supply from the federal government.
To ensure equitable distribution of the vaccine and expand access to more children and families the Administration will partner with school districts and charter schools to host vaccination clinics in school buildings for children and families.
∙ In a recent survey of Minnesota school districts and charter schools, 80% of respondents have indicated interest in hosting vaccination clinics.
∙ The Administration is partnering with districts and schools to host at least 20 school-based vaccination clinics in high-need areas around Minnesota over the next four weeks.

The state’s Community Vaccination Program location at the Mall of America will also triple its capacity to provide up to 1,500 shots per day to 5-11-year-olds. And the Department of Health’s COVID-19 Community Coordinators – trusted community partners – will host clinics offering the vaccine not only to 5-11 years-olds but their families as well.

Once CDC has approved the vaccine for 5-11 and your child is eligible, Minnesota families can:
∙ Check with their pediatrician or family medicine clinic website about appointments;
∙ Visit mn.gov/vaccine to use the Vaccine Locator Map to locate and contact providers near them;
∙ Use the CDC’s Vaccine Finder at vaccines.gov to find pharmacies offering pediatric vaccinations; or
∙ Look to your local school district for more information about vaccination opportunities in your child’s school.
While children 5-11 cannot be vaccinated yet, now is the time to help families get prepared to get their children shots. This means letting them know that full authorization is coming soon and making sure they have access to all the information they need ahead of time, so they feel confident and ready to get their child vaccinated.

Thank you in advance for your partnership. Please reach out with any questions or requests. You know best what your community needs, and we are here to work alongside you to vaccinate our kids.