:strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65)/d1vhqlrjc8h82r.cloudfront.net/03-05-2021/t_9eb90a4c44c14d78b89900dc3c2338c6_name_image.jpg "Nicklaus Children’s Hospital offers COVID-19 vaccines for teenagers, young adults")
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Florida. – Floridians aged 16 to 21 with medical conditions that make them particularly vulnerable to COVID-19 can apply for vaccinations at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital starting next week, the Miami-Dade facility announced on Friday .
Doses of the Pfizer vaccine will be available to people of that age who are “currently under the care of doctors or specialists for medical conditions identified by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) as having an increased risk of serious illness associated with COVID-19”, Nicklaus said in a press release.
Nomination requests can be submitted at Nicklauschildrens.org/Covid19Vaccine starting Monday, March 8.
Applicants will be required to provide the Florida COVID-19 Extreme Vulnerability Determination form completed by their physician.
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The hospital says it has already vaccinated 500 eligible patients “through contact with other hospitals and health systems in the area, pediatricians and pediatric subspecialists in Florida, which has resulted in hundreds of referrals for vaccination appointments.”
Dr. Marcos Mestre, Nicklaus’ medical director, says that of the more than 700 doses they gave these patients “we didn’t see any complications from that”.
The expansion to allow online registrations from the public comes after the hospital recently received an additional quota of injections from Pfizer.
“Although most children are only slightly affected by COVID-19, those with complex conditions can be at risk of serious illness if they contract the virus,” said the president and CEO of child health system Nicklaus, Matthew A. Love, in an announcement. “We are honored to be able to offer the vaccine to support the care of vulnerable children in Florida.”
Conditions that increase the risk, as identified by the CDC, include asthma (moderate to severe), cancer, cerebrovascular disease, chronic kidney disease, cystic fibrosis, diabetes (type 1 or 2), Down syndrome, heart disease, hypertension, immunocompromised diseases , liver disease, neurological conditions, obesity, pulmonary fibrosis, sickle cell disease or thalassemia.
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Diego Diaz, 18, has cystic fibrosis and just received his second dose earlier this week through Nicklaus.
“More than grateful,” he said. “I hope that other hospitals will take note and start doing the same, because I really think that we should prioritize not only a certain age group, but also a demographic group that is at greatest risk.”
Diaz added: “It is always a concern that maybe there is someone close to you who has it, maybe someone you pass through may have COVID, so it is always scary to leave the house.”
The Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine is authorized for use by people aged 16 and over. (The Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are authorized for people over 18 years of age.)
There are limited data on how the vaccine affects the pediatric population, but Mestre said that studies are underway for patients aged 12 to 16 years and “hopefully by the end of the year we will have a vaccine available for them as well”.
Pfizer and Moderna hope to start studies in children aged 11 and under later this year, while researchers examine whether injections are safe for younger patients.
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For more information about the Nicklaus vaccine program, click here.
SEE TOO: Which adults are eligible for COVID-19 vaccines in Florida
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