City public school students 12 and older can get
vaccinated in school during fi rst week of classes
TIMESLEDGER | QNS.COM | SEPT. 10 - SEPT. 16, 2021 41
zation for the Pfizer vaccine
on children between
the ages of 12 and 15.
The FDA has only
granted emergency use
authorizations to the
Moderna and Johnson &
Johnson vaccines.
School-based vaccination
sites will not be open
to the general public and
health care workers will
return to schools the
week of Oct. 4 to administer
second doses.
So far, about 60% of
New York City’s vaccineeligible
children, or
310,183 kids, have gotten
at least one dose of the
Pfizer-BioNTech, according
to city officials.
It is unclear though how
many of those children
are public school students.
“Vaccinations have
proven to significantly
reduce the health effects
of COVID-19 and reduce
the transmissibility of
the disease,” said a DOE
spokesperson. “They are
our passport out of this
pandemic.
All DOE staff are required
to have their first
dose of a COVID-19 vaccine
by Sept. 27.
Reach reporter Alejandra
O'Connell-Domenech
by e-mail at adomenech@
schnepsmedia.com.
BY ALEJANDRA
O'CONNELL-DOMENECH
Public school students
12 years of age and
older can get inoculated
against COVID-19 during
the school day for
a short time later this
month.
The New York City
Department of Education
will set up vaccination
sites within school
buildings serving vaccine
eligible students,
or kids between the ages
of 12 and 17, which will
administer first doses
of the Pfizer-BioNTech
vaccine during the first
week of classes, which
begins on Sept. 13.
“This year we have a
powerful source of protection
that we did not
have last year: vaccinations,”
said Chancellor
Porter, who broke the
news about the schoolbased
vaccination sites
during a City Council
oversight hearing on
the fall’s full school reopening
on Wednesday.
“These incredibly safe
and effective vaccines
will do so much to keep
our school communities
safe.”
“Vaccinations have
proven to significantly
reduce the health effects
of COVID-19 and reduce
the transmissibility of
the disease,” said a DOE
spokesperson. “They are
our passport out of this
pandemic.”
About 700 school sites
will have health care
workers administering
the vaccine. Students
interested in getting the
shot will need to get the
approval of their parent
or guardian and return a
parental consent form to
school administrators,
according to the DOE. Individual
schools will be
releasing further guidance
on who students can
submit consent forms in
the coming days, a department
spokesperson
said in an email to am-
NewYork Metro.
School staff and students’
family members
can also receive a dose of
the vaccine at each site,
which will only be offering
the Pfizer-BioNTech
vaccine. The Pfizer vaccine
is the only COVID-19
inoculation granted full
approval by the Food and
Drug Administration for
people 16 years old and
up. The FDA has given
emergency-use authori-
Mayor Bill de Blasio joins Schools Chancellor Meisha
Porter and Health Commissioner Dr. Dave Chokshi
to visit the Bronx Summer Rising Vaccination Site at
Lehman High School.
Photo by Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Offi ce
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