'Strong' start to kids vaccine campaign, but challenges loom

Nov 12, 20210

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Leo Hahn, 11, gets the first shot of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine, Tuesday, Nov. 9, 2021, at the University of Washington Medical Center in Seattle. Last week, U.S. health officials gave the final signoff to Pfizer's kid-size COVID-19 shot, a milestone that opened a major expansion of the nation's vaccination campaign to children as young as 5. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)

WASHINGTON (AP) - The campaign to vaccinate elementary school age children in the U.S. is off to a strong start, health officials said Wednesday, but experts say there are signs that it will be difficult to sustain the initial momentum.

About 900,000 kids aged 5 to 11 will have received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine in their first week of eligibility, the White House said, providing the first glimpse at the pace of the school-aged vaccination campaign.

"We're off to a very strong start," said White House COVID-19 coordinator Jeff Zients, during a briefing with reporters.

https://apnews.com/article/coronavirus-pandemic-health-ccd3790c4cb6ba86aa2d46be4283ead5