Lee Health is accepting appointments to provide the COVID-19 vaccine to children aged six months to five years old, officials announced.
The publicly operated hospital system in Lee County did not say how many doses of vaccine it has secured since federal authorities last month approved the shots for the youngest age group in the U.S. last month.
“The vaccine will be available at (Lee Physician Group) pediatrics locations and the pediatric infectious disease office at HealthPark Medical Center for established Lee Health patients,” spokeswoman Meaghan Smith said in an email.
“Parents can make an appointment through MyChart or by calling the office directly,” she said. “We currently have several hundred doses, and will order more as needed.”
The hospital system has both the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines; there is no cost to families, she said.
Previously:Florida’s COVID vaccination count jumps 263,000 in two weeks
And: SWFL hospitals brace for COVID spike after Fourth of July celebrations
Several large pediatric practices in both Lee and Collier counties also said they have vaccine for kids under five.
What about NCH Healthcare System, Physicians Regional Healthcare System?
The NCH Healthcare System in Collier said in late June that it was not ordering the vaccines for this age group but more recently decided to order it, NCH spokesman Shawn McConnell said.
“While COVID vaccine demand for this age group has been limited, NCH is in the process of ordering the vaccine to have it available for those NCH pediatricians who have parents requesting it for their children,” he said Thursday.
Officials at Physicians Regional Healthcare System, also in Collier, could not be reached for comment.
Healthcare Network, a large nonprofit pediatric and adult practice in Collier, has the Moderna vaccine for children aged six months and older, spokeswoman Gabrielle O’Boyle said in an email. She did not have readily available the number of doses or if demand is high.
Physicians’ Primary Care in Lee received its order for pediatric patients Wednesday, spokeswoman Melissa Tenzel said.
“At this time, the demand has not been high,” she said.
Florida in the spotlight last month
Florida was in the national spotlight last month when it was the only state to not pre-order vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech for the youngest group in anticipation of approval coming from the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has backing from state Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo in opposing the vaccine for kids under five, defended the state’s position when White House officials encouraged Florida to change course.
“Doctors can get it,” DeSantis said at a news conference in Miami. “Hospitals can get it. But there’s not going to be any state programs that are going to be trying to get COVID jabs to infants and toddlers and newborns. That’s not something we think is appropriate.”
The White House responded by giving the OK for pediatricians and hospitals in Florida to order directly from the federal government.
Days later the Lakeland-based Publix, which was at the forefront of vaccinating adults, said it would not be offering the shots to kids under four but did not offer an explanation for its decision. Publix is still offering the vaccine to kids five and older.
Other major pharmacy chains, such as CVS, Walgreens and Walmart are offering the vaccine to kids under five.
Customers at CVS are encouraged to visit the chain’s site at https://www.cvs.com/minuteclinic for appointment availability.
Walmart is vaccinating children aged 3 to 5. Information about the vaccine at Walmart can be found by visiting https://www.walmart.com/
Walgreen’s is offering the shots to children 3 and older at select locations nationwide; visit website at www.walgreens.com.
Customers of Winn Dixie can make appointment at www.winndixie.com/pharmacy/covid-vaccine.
