On October 29, once the Food and Drug Administration approved Pfizer's Covid vaccine for children ages 5 to 11, the Centers for Disease Control followed up by recommending that children in that age group get the vaccine. 

“This is another major milestone in our efforts to protect more children, their families, and our communities as we work to end the pandemic,” said Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra. “We are following the data and science, and after a thorough review by FDA and CDC, we are ready to get millions of children vaccinated. Thanks to their rigorous, comprehensive, and independent review of the data, we know that vaccination of younger children against COVID-19 proved to be safe and effective.”

OST providers are an important part of local communities and can support families in accessing the Covid-19 vaccine for their children. There are several ways to help:

Educate

• Raise awareness about the new CDC vaccine recommendation for people ages 5 and older.
• Educate yourself and others about the importance of vaccination for both adults and children.
• Share information about vaccine safety with families and staff members.

Increase Access

• Find and share vaccine sites in your community with families through state and local public health departments or through Vaccines.gov.
• Coordinate efforts, such as vaccine clinics, with local schools and public health officials.

For more on how you can be responsive during the pandemic, visit the National Center on Afterschool and Summer Enrichment Resource Library for COVID-19 related resources.