‘Please be patient’: It’s not easy for Kansas City area kids to get a COVID vaccine
Johnson County’s health department received its first batch of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5-11 on Wednesday.
By lunchtime Thursday, all the appointments for the first round next week were filled.
Children’s Mercy hosts its first vaccine clinic for this age group on Saturday at its Overland Park location. It’s already full.
“A large group has been waiting for this day. They want their kids to be vaccinated right out of the gates,” said the hospital’s Dr. Jennifer Watts.
In Johnson County alone, health officials are trying to get a handle on how many of about 56,000 eligible children in the county will ultimately be vaccinated. And though they know some parents will choose not to have their children vaccinated, the demand is high now.
“Please be patient with us,” Sanmi Areola, director of the Johnson County Department of Health and Environment, said during a Facebook Live event Thursday with Watts.
Areola said the first batches “are coming in at a fairly slow rate.” The department received 600 doses on Wednesday and might receive another batch Friday, he said.
On Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended a special lower dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for children ages 5 to 11. The Food and Drug Administration approved it last week.
Kansas and Missouri then updated their vaccine guidelines to include vaccines for the younger kids, allowing health departments and other providers to begin giving the shots as early as this week in some places.
These shots are available from more providers than the adult vaccines were at the outset, said Areola. In the Kansas City area, providers include local health departments and clinics and national pharmacies including CVS and Walgreens. You can find a site nearby at vaccines.gov, by texting your ZIP code to 438829, or calling 800-232-0233.
Beginning next week, the vaccine will be available at Children’s Mercy locations with an appointment.
“We also know there’s a large group of individuals who want to take time to look at the data and make the best decision for their family and it may take them a little bit longer,” Watts said. “But we hope by providing some of the factual information, we can help that group come to the best decision for their family.”
Watts and Areola asked parents to make appointments with their pediatricians’ office. Don’t just rely on the county health department or Children’s Mercy, Areola cautioned, because that’s “not going to be sufficient” given the demand.
Watts said she knew of pediatrician offices that are already offering the vaccine, and more will start in upcoming weeks.
The advice is to call ahead, but some parents are already finding phone lines jammed.
Luke and Sarah Shelby, both doctors who work for the University of Kansas Health System, reported it took them 15 minutes of calling to get through to their child’s pediatrician’s office on Wednesday.
And when they got through, they were 50th in line for an appointment for their 5-year-old son, they said during KU’s daily medical update.
Watts and Areola urged parents to get their vaccine information from reputable sources. Health officials have spent much of the pandemic batting down misinformation and flat-out lies about both COVID-19 and the vaccines.
Children’s Mercy has a vaccine facts page on its website, childrensmercy.org.
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