Serving Larchmont Village, Hancock Park, and the Greater Wilshire neighborhoods of Los Angeles since 2011.

Vaccinating Children Ages 5-11

 


On Tuesday, November 2nd, the CDC recommended children ages 5-11 receive the Pfizer-BioNTech pediatric COVID-19 vaccine. Given the timing of the announcement, starting the inoculation process right away could offer little ones protection against COVID as early as mid-December. This would give families a measure of relief while traveling for the holidays, sitting down to meals with extended family, and seeing Disneyland decked in lights. 

As a parent of a five year old myself, I hit the ground running to find the best options in the Larchmont (and surrounding) area. Larchmont Pediatrics is in the process of being verified to carry the vaccine and will notify parents via email once they have it. The Rite Aid on Larchmont does not currently carry the COVID vaccine for 5-11 year olds yet either. PM Pediatrics will be receiving it “in the coming weeks.” So where is a proactive parent supposed to go to vaccinate their newly eligible child? 

First, LAUSD is offering mobile vaccination teams at local school sites starting on November 8th (check with your own school to find out when they’ll be visiting). On November 16th, 13 of LAUSD’s Wellness Centers that currently are vaccinating district students ages 12 and up will begin vaccinating the 5-11 group. The Wellness Centers will also be hosting vaccine clinics on select Saturdays with appointments available through DailyPass. More information is available on the LAUSD COVID-19 website or see the list below. 

 

List of LAUSD sites that will begin vaccinating 5-11 year-olds on November 16. Click to see full size image.

 

Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles (CHLA) is another great option with appointments available through the MyTurn website (https://myturn.ca.gov). I spoke with my source inside CHLA who told me “It’s a really kid-friendly experience with nurses who are used to giving little kids shots and ends with a lollipop.” As they get more supply of vaccines for this age group, you will see appointment times continue to pop up. Just yesterday afternoon, CHLA released additional appointment spots. As an added bonus, parents can make an appointment to get their booster here as well. But be aware, at this moment CHLA is not taking walk-ins. 

I also visited the CDC website (https://www.vaccines.gov) and found many appointments available at various CVS, Walgreens, Rite Aid, and Ralph’s locations, all of which offer easy online booking. 

Other vaccination options that parents are buzzing about in different mommy groups include St. John’s Well Child and Family Center, San Jose Pharmacy in Glendale, Flintridge Pharmacy in La Cañada Flintridge, Mickey Fine Pharmacy in Beverly Hills, Huntington Library in Pasadena (comes with two free tickets to the Huntington!), the Union Station vaccination kiosk, and Balboa Sports Complex in Encino. The LA County website has its own search tool as well (http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/acd/ncorona2019/vaccine/hcwsignup/?vaccine=p,m,j&pfizer511=TRUE). 

It seems that no matter which route you go, vaccine appointments for the 5-11 age group are readily available in short order and that parents of eligible children can reasonably expect them to be fully inoculated by the new year.

 


Daniella Berkowitz is a writer with a background in fashion copy. She lives in the Larchmont area with her husband, three daughters, and dog.

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