Pfizer COVID-19 vaccinations begin in Brevard for 12- to 15-year-olds to help slow spread – Florida Today

Health First clinic in Melbourne offers Pfizer vaccine for students and teachers Florida Today

With the federal government's approval last week of use of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for those ages 12 through 15, local health care providers are stepping up efforts to administer the vaccine to that age group.

Health First, for example, on Monday began a special clinic, offering access to the Pfizer vaccinesin the former Melbourne Pro-Health & Fitness building at 611 E. Sheridan Road inMelbourne. The clinic will continue from 3:30 to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday.

A steady stream of students, accompanied by their parents, received their vaccines on Monday, with about 300 signed up.

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Among the first to get vaccinated was 14-year-old Anna Vittitoe of Palm Bay, a ninth grader at West Shore Junior/Senior High.

She said she had no qualms about being vaccinated, and felt it would help her stay healthy. The more people getting vaccinated, she said, the sooner the pandemic can end.

Her father, Steve Vittitoe, added that "we're very happy to be here."

Health First registered nurse Elizabeth Oliver gives sixth grader Lainey Lutz her first dose of the Pfizer vaccine. Health First hosted its first vaccine clinic for children ages 12 and older, in partnership with local teachers, Monday at a Health First facility at 611 E. Sheridan Road inMelbourne.(Photo: MALCOLM DENEMARK/FLORIDA TODAY)

Health First officials encouraged parents to consider gettingtheir children vaccinated.

"Even though kids are less likely to suffer the serious health effects that have plagued adults stricken with COVID-19, being immunized with a vaccine that is 95% effective goes beyond protecting them but also the people they are in contact with," said Jessica Maynor, Heath First's system director of staffing and director of its vaccine services. "Being vaccinated can seriously reduce the risk of these teens unknowingly passing an asymptomatic infection to those they interact with their family members, teachers, coaches and more."

Maynor emphasized that "the more people who are vaccinated, the closer we come to slowing the spread of this virus."

The two-dose Pfizer vaccine can be administered to those age 12 and up. But the two-dose Moderna vaccine and the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine can be administered only to those ages 18 and up.

So parents of those ages 12 to 17 should check with their vaccine provider to be sure which vaccine is offered.

The Florida Department of Health, Brevard County Emergency Management and Brevard County Library Services are offering Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines for those ages 12 and up at 10 libraries throughout the county in June.

Here is the schedule for those vaccination events, which will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.:

Omni Healthcare President and Chief Executive Officer Dr. Craig Deligdish said Omni expects to get a shipment of Pfizer vaccines next Monday, and they will be available for those ages 12 and up.

He said the vaccines will be available at all Omni sites in the county. To access Omnis online registration, go tohttps://unityphr.com/campaigns/omni/vaccine or text vaccine to 844-594-3292. In addition to the new online registration system, those eligible also can book an appointment by calling the Omni Healthcare COVID-19 hotline at 321-802-5515; or by emailing their name and phone number to COVID@OMNIhealthcare.com.

Health First registered nurse Elizabeth Oliver gives ninth grader Sherri Trimble her first Pfizer vaccine.(Photo: MALCOLM DENEMARK/FLORIDA TODAY)

Meanwhile, Parrish Healthcare is offering the Pfizer vaccine to those ages 16 and up at its Parrish Health & Fitness Center vaccination site, 2210 Cheney Highway, Titusville. Appointments are required. Parrish Medical Center has established a COVID-19 vaccine hotline at 321-268-6311, and vaccine appointments can be made by going to https://vaccine.parrishmed.com/.

NatalieSellers, Parrish's senior vice president for communications, community and corporate services, said Parrish officials are discussing potentially opening up the vaccinations for those ages 12 to 15, but no decision has been made.

Parrish announced Monday that it has surpassed the milestone of administering 10,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses since February. In comparison, Health First has topped 41,000 vaccinations at its clinic since January.

Brevard County's third major hospital company, Steward Health Care, currently offers only the Moderna vaccine at its local hospitals, so those under 18 are not eligible.

In a statement issued Wednesday related to the expanded use of the Pfizer vaccine, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Rochelle Walensky encouraged adolescents to be vaccinated, calling it "another important step to getting out of the COVID-19 pandemic, and closer to normalcy."

"For vaccination to do its job, we must do our critical part," Walensky said. "That means vaccinating as many people as possible who are eligible. This official CDC action opens vaccination to approximately 17 million adolescents in the United States and strengthens our nations efforts to protect even more people from the effects of COVID-19. Getting adolescents vaccinated means their faster return to social activities, and can provide parents and caregivers peace of mind knowing their family is protected."

Health First registered nurse Elizabeth Oliver gives eighth grader Shelby Maynor her first Pfizer vaccine.(Photo: MALCOLM DENEMARK/FLORIDA TODAY)

Walensky notedthat, although "most children with COVID-19 have mild or no symptoms, some children can get severely ill and require hospitalization. There have also been rare, tragic cases of children dying from COVID-19 and its effects, including multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children."

Walensky conceded that some parents want more information before their children receive a vaccine.

"I encourage parents with questions to talk to your childs health care provider or your family doctor to learn more about the vaccine," Walensky said in her statement.

Parrish Medical Center lead paramedic Leigh Spradling said each vaccination is "getting us one step closer to a new sense of normal."

As of Monday, 260,541 Brevard residents, or 42.6% of the county's population, have received at least one dose of a vaccine. Of those, 211,796 residents, or 34.7% of the county population, have completed all recommended doses of their version of the vaccine.

But those percentages remain far below the 75% threshold health experts cite as needed to achieve "herd immunity" that would significantly curtail the spread of the coronavirus.

About 8.3% of all COVID-19 cases in Brevard were reported in patients ages 14 and under, and about 15.2% were reported in those ages 15 through 24.

According to data compiled by the Florida Department of Health, there have been 2,771 cases of COVID-19 associated with public and private primary and secondary schools in Brevard County recorded from Sept.6, 2020, to May 1. Students account for the vast majority of these cases, although some cases involved teachers and other staff.

Schools with the most reported cases during that time period were:

Maynor noted that, for the older students about to graduate from high school, manyuniversities and colleges now are requiring proof of vaccination prior to arriving on campus. So aremany summer camps and extracurricular activities.

As students begin looking to next school year and are getting ready for summer activities, "getting vaccinated now will help give them and their family members greater peace of mind," Maynor said.

Health First registered nurse Faith Willis gives sixth grader Luna Stieber her first Pfizer vaccine.(Photo: MALCOLM DENEMARK/FLORIDA TODAY)

Maynor said local teachers have volunteered to serve as on-site ambassadors for Health First's vaccination clinics, "helping to answer questions, calm jittery students and parents, and help reinforce the message that a vaccinated student can safely head into the summer and new school year with confidence."

Among the teachers at the event on Monday were Patricia Elliott and Karen Tabor, both exceptional student education teachers at Atlantis Elementary in Port St. John.

They were looking forward to a time when students can once againbe more collaborative in their projects and learn as teams.

"Students want to be part of the solution," said Tabor, who teaches third and fourth grades, explaining the strong turnout for the Health First vaccinations.

Elliott, who teaches sixth grade, said she wants "students to be able to work together with each other" on projects, rather than being separated from one another.

"Kids learn from each other," Elliott said.

Michael Seeley, president of the Health First Foundation, credited Brevard School Board Vice Chair Matt Susin and Brevard Federation of Teachers Treasurer Kyle Savage with working with Health First to coordinate the special clinics for students.

"This is one of the highest and best things we can do," Seeley said.

By vaccinating students as a way to help end the pandemic, Seeley said, it leads to the process by which it allows "kids to be kids."

Twelve-year-old Jasmine Hill came to the clinic for her COVID-19 vaccine on Monday, accompanied by her mother, Ceean Hill.

Ceean Hill said she wants her children to be vaccinated because she wants them to be able to get back to sports and their other regular activities.

Jasmine agreed, saying: "I got the vaccine because it is important. It would protect people around you."

She said she is looking forward things going back to normal.

"We could go on the beach without masks. I could go to back to school without masks. I could go in the store without masks," Jasmine said. "Ahhh. No more masks. That's great."

Pfizer andits German partner, BioNTech, tested the vaccine in more than 1,000 adolescents, giving an equal number a placebo. Among the 2,260 participants, only 16 developed COVID-19, all of whom received the placebo.

None of the adolescents suffered a severe reaction to the vaccine, and the biggest side effects for adolescents in COVID-19 vaccine trials were headache and arm pain. The CDCs Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices said it was fine for parents to give their children pain relievers after the shot.

COVID-19 now is one of the top 10 causes of death among adolescents ages 12 to 17, according to Dr. Sara Oliver, co-lead for the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices' COVID-19 Vaccines Work Group. The disease accounted for 1.3% of all deaths among adolescents from Jan. 1, 2020, through April 30, 2021, or 127 deaths overall.

While this sounds low, it's worth noting that this would still be in the top 10 causes of deaths among children, Oliver said.

Adolescents ages 12 to 17 years also are at risk of severe illness from COVID-19. There have been more than 1.5 million reported cases and more than 13,000 hospitalizations to date in that age group, Oliver said.

Theyre also more likely to transmit COVID-19 to people in their households and communities than younger children, she added.

Other vaccine makers are also testing their shots in teenagers but have not yet completed their studies or requested authorization to deliver their shots to minors.

Tim Shortt of FLORIDA TODAYand Elizabeth Weise ofUSA Today contributed to this report.

Dave Berman is business editor at FLORIDA TODAY.Contact Berman at dberman@floridatoday.com. Twitter: @bydaveberman.

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Pfizer COVID-19 vaccinations begin in Brevard for 12- to 15-year-olds to help slow spread - Florida Today