HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — Huntsville health leaders urged everyone, including kids ages 5 to 11, to get the COVID-19 vaccine at the area's COVID-19 briefing on Wednesday.
Health leaders say children have been vastly impacted by the pandemic, beyond wearing masks in schools.
"In the five to 11 group specifically, we've had almost 2 million cases with 8,000 hospitalizations and 100 deaths," said Alabama Department of Public Health Medical Officer Wes Stubblefield.
Experts say the vaccines have been extensively researched on both adults and children.
"5,000 children were included in the study looking at safety and efficacy of this vaccine. They were followed for two to three months ages 5 to 11," said Stubblefield. "It was very safe caused minor side effects such as soreness at the injection site, fatigue and headache is the primary side effects. There were no cases of severe COVID, no cases of MISC, no cases of myocarditis, no serious adverse events, and no deaths in the population group."
Huntsville Hospital COO and President Tracy Doughty says that if you and your kid want to get the shot, they can do so without missing school.
"We want to make sure that parents don't have to check children out of school and be respectful of their classroom time. We will require a parent and our legal guardian to be with the child," said Doughty.
Vaccines for kids in this age group will be administered at John Hunt Park on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. CVS, Walgreens, and Walmart are also scheduling youth COVID vaccinations.
"We know that there are some parents out there that are very anxious to receive their vaccine for their children. We and I specifically request that you talk to your health care provider that someone you trust and get the information about the vaccine about the safety and efficacy so that you can make an informed decision for yourself and for your family," said Doughty.