| While it’s a bit of a bummer to think about going back to school before it’s even the Fourth of July, in many parts of the country, if you want your child to be immunized against COVID-19 by the time classes start, you need to act fast.
Many large school systems — including Atlanta; Fort Myers, Florida; Flagstaff, Arizona; and the entire state of Hawaii — start school in the first two weeks of August.
It takes five weeks to be fully vaccinated with Pfizer’s vaccine, the only one authorized for adolescents ages 12 to 17. That means, for example, Atlanta students need to get their first shot by July 1 to be fully immunized by the first day of school on Aug. 5.
Pfizer’s vaccine is given in two doses spaced three weeks apart. After the second dose, it takes two weeks until someone is considered fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.
As of June 24, nearly 1 in 5 children ages 12 to 15 were fully vaccinated, and nearly 1 in 3 teens ages 16 and 17 were fully vaccinated, according to CDC data.
Dr. William Schaffner, a longtime vaccine adviser to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said they think the federal Department of Health and Human Services hasn’t done enough marketing to parents about the importance of COVID-19 vaccination.
“The messaging about COVID vaccination has not been optimal. The federal government moves very, very slowly,” said Schaffner, a member of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.
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