• By Todd Luck
• Posted Wednesday, December 14, 2022

Public Health offering COVID-19 booster for children under 5 starting Dec. 14

The Forsyth County Department of Public Health will begin accepting walk-ups for the Fall COVID-19 Booster for children younger than 5 years-old starting on Wednesday, Dec. 14.

The latest COVID booster, which was previously available for anyone age 5 and older, has now been approved by the FDA and CDC to be administered starting at 6 months old. This bivalent booster provides protection against both the original strain of COVID-19 and the Omicron variant. The vaccine has shown to be safe and effective against severe illness in this age group.

Children are eligible for the booster if they’re 6 months to 5 years-old and it’s been two months since their last dose of the Moderna vaccine, or if they’re 6 months to 4 years-old and they’ve had two doses of the Pfizer vaccine and they’re ready for their third dose. The booster is not authorized for children in that age group who have completed their 3-dose Pfizer series.

Forsyth County Public Health takes walk-ups for COVID vaccinations at the Health Department, 799 N. Highland Ave. Clinic hours are Monday-Wednesday 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Thursday 9 a.m.-7:30 p.m. and Friday 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m. No appointment is needed. Children can receive other vaccinations during their visit, but parents will need to make an appointment for those.