In the five days following federal approval of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for 5- to 11-year-olds, more than 9,000 newly eligible young Minnesotans received a first dose.
State data shows 9,442 kids age 5-11 had received at least one shot of a COVID vaccine as of Nov. 7, accounting for about 2% of that age range’s population in Minnesota.
Gov. Tim Walz’s office highlighted the efforts of community vaccine clinics that began taking appointments almost immediately. That included at the Mall of America, where more than 4,000 doses were administered to kids 5-11 from Wednesday through Saturday, the governor said.
The Minnesota Children’s Museum, Children’s Museum of Southern Minnesota in Mankato and Brooklyn Center Elementary School also hosted clinics over the weekend.
Walz and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan have regularly highlighted the hundreds of locations around the state where children can receive a COVID vaccine.
Through the opening five days, just over two-thirds (6.482) of all the 5- to 11-year-old vaccine recipients were located in the seven-county Twin Cities metro. And 3,057 of those came in Hennepin County specifically.
| County | Kids 5-11 with 1+ COVID shots |
|---|---|
|
Anoka |
238 |
|
Carver |
212 |
|
Dakota |
782 |
|
Hennepin |
3,057 |
|
Ramsey |
1,559 |
|
Scott |
153 |
|
Washington |
427 |
But two of the counties with the highest 5-11 vaccination rate (meaning at least one shot) are outside the Twin Cities. They are Winona at 8% (265 kids 5-11 with at least one shot) and Olmsted at 6% (831 kids 5-11 with at least one shot).
Another five counties have a 5-11 vaccination rate of 3%: Douglas, Hennepin, Lyon, Nicollet and Ramsey.
Seventeen counties showed no vaccine data for kids 5-11.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) approved use of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine on children between the ages of 5 and 11 on Nov. 2. Shortly after, Walz said 1,100 providers in Minnesota stood ready to begin administering doses to kids.
Related: COVID hospitalization levels in MN hit record high for 2021
For many, approval came as a relief.
There have been three COVID deaths in Minnesota among kids under the age of 15 since the start of the pandemic. However, cases among younger age groups have risen. That includes 36,121 COVID cases among kids 5-9, and 46,881 among 10- to 14-year-olds — meaning those ages account for 10% of all positive COVID infections recorded in the state.
The state has also recorded thousands of new COVID infections among students and staff at K-12 schools, and at the end of October there were dozens of Minnesota schools reporting at least 20 cases in the previous two weeks.
https://bringmethenews.com/minnesota-news/how-many-minnesota-kids-age-5-11-have-received-a-covid-vaccination-so-far
