LAS CRUCES – On Friday, the state Department of Health began distributing COVID-19 vaccines to children ages 5-11 in Las Cruces for the first time.
The vaccines for children are one-third the dose of the adult vaccine.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced this week that vaccines could be distributed immediately to the younger age group, and the state is working to set up clinics to distribute the doses.
New Mexico received its first shipment of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for young children last week and will receive two more shipments over the next week totaling approximately 90,000 doses, according to health officials.
When Joel Ortiz heard of the availability of vaccines in New Mexico, he immediately registered his three daughters.
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Ortiz took 8-year-old Harper, 7-year-old Violet, and 5-year-old Everette to the Las Cruces Public Health Department on Friday afternoon, where 77 vaccines were available for the day.
“The reward far outweighs the risk,” Ortiz said. “We have already known people who had sick children and were not fortunate enough to be part of the large pool of people who had no serious impact.
Ethan Enriquez, 11, also visited the office on Friday to get his first vaccine.
He said he had been looking forward to the vaccination for a long time. The shot felt like a small pinch, he said.
“It’ll keep you safe, even if you don’t travel the world a lot, you still need it,” said Ethan.
Ethan said there were 14 teacher absences and maybe eight students at his middle school who called just this week.
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Health Department spokesman David Morgan said Las Cruces is expected to receive around 9,000 children’s vaccines.
“Most of the (vaccine supply) is being distributed to our other community partners from pediatricians, offices, pharmacies, etc.,” said Morgan.
The public COVID-19 calendar on Impfnm.org shows when and where children’s vaccines are available. Select the Pfizer for Kids (5-11) display to search for options.
To register for the COVID-19 vaccine, visit impfstoffnm.org. To register a child for their vaccine, visit impfnm.org/kids.
The New Mexico Department of Health will be delivering free COVID-19 and flu vaccines on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at the Las Cruces Public Health Office, 1170 N. Solano Drive. Vaccinations for adults are given from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and for children from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
Miranda Cyr, a member of the Report for America Corps, can be reached at [email protected] or @mirandabcyr on Twitter. Show your support for the Report for America program at https://bit.ly/LCSNRFA.
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