Children can get the coronavirus vaccine at the same time they receive routine vaccinations for such ailments as the flu, chickenpox or measles, says the American Academy of Pediatrics.
“Given the importance of routine vaccination and the need for rapid uptake of COVID-19 vaccines, the AAP supports co-administration of routine childhood and adolescent immunizations with COVID-19 vaccines (or vaccination in the days before or after) for children and adolescents who are behind on or due for immunizations and/or at increased risk from vaccine-preventable diseases,” the organization said a statement this week, WTTG-TV (Channel 5) reported.
Vaccinations for children between 5 and 11 years old began in earnest nationwide after the Food and Drug Administration gave emergency-use authorization of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for that age group on Oct. 29 and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention made a formal recommendation four days later.
More than 1 million adolescents in that age group have since gotten at least one dose of the vaccine, according to the White House.