After US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended the Covid-19 vaccine for young children, Texas Children's Hospital has nearly 37,000 Covid-19 vaccine appointments booked through the week of Thanksgiving for kids ages 5-11, said Jermaine Monroe, co-chair of a Covid-19 task force for the Houston-based hospital.
"We have seen a tremendous response over the last five days of parents scheduling appointments for their children," Monroe added.
At one point, the hospital was averaging 120 appointments per minute, Natasha Barrett, a hospital spokesperson said.
"We've not experienced anything like this," said Monroe of the demand for vaccines. "We've planned for it, and we're glad ... because many people thought that there would not be high demand."
Families are traveling from "as far as New Braunfels, Texas" and various other areas in the state to schedule appointments and vaccinate their children at the pediatric hospital located within the Texas Medical Center, Monroe tells CNN.
In an effort to make vaccines more available to the community, Monroe said the hospital system is going to implement some new efforts.
he hospital system will go out into the community starting next week and host three events per week to provide vaccines in areas hardest hit by Covid-19.
Parents who are either unvaccinated or have only received one dose will have the opportunity to get inoculated during their child's appointment.
"Not only are we opening our doors, bringing vaccines into the community, but we're also building vaccine competence in various forms—meeting people where they are, in languages that they would prefer, with people that look like them," said Monroe.
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November 04, 2021 at 12:32AM
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Children ages 5 to 11 can now get a Covid-19 vaccine in the US: Live updates - cnn.com
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