ST. LOUIS – St. Louis area health care systems are set to start vaccinating 12 to 15-year-olds today against COVID-19. This comes after the Pfizer vaccine cleared the final federal hurdle Wednesday and was approved for use in that age group by a CDC committee.
BJC HealthCare and St. Luke’s will start vaccinating the newly eligible age group today. SSM Health said they will start giving shots to 12 to 15-year-olds on Saturday.
Mercy started giving shots to this age group on Tuesday. A spokesperson said Mercy’s original plan was to start giving shots today, but they moved up their timetable after the Food and Drug Administration gave the Pfizer vaccine emergency use authorization earlier this week. Mercy said the CDC committee provided additional guidance, but that approval was not required after the FDA gave the go-ahead.
The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services signed off on 12 to 15-year-olds receiving the Pfizer vaccine Wednesday night. Officials there said another 313,000 Missourians are now eligible to be vaccinated against COVID-19.
