57% of eligible kids in the Finger Lakes region partially vaccinated against COVID-19

Rochester, New York – According to the numbers from the Finger Lakes Vaccine Hub, over half of the eligible children in the region have had at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.

The Finger Lakes region includes Monroe, Livingston, Ontario, Wayne, Orleans, Genesee, Wyoming, and Seneca counties.

According to Dr. Nancy Bennett, the leader of the Finger Lakes Vaccine Hub, numbers in the region are higher than most but believe it could be much better.

“There’s just no question that we want to tamp down the spread, and a lot of the spread does occur in children,” Bennett said.

As Pfizer submitted a request for emergency use authorization from the FDA on Thursday, the country is now one step closer to the approval of a COVID-19 vaccine for children ages five to 11-years-old.

According to a mother of three Marlene Cortes says two of her kids are fully vaccinated. Her youngest is only seven years old and not yet eligible and they recently had a COVID-19 scare.

“We couldn’t go anywhere because we weren’t sure if my other son had COVID. And that put us also in a panic because the youngest is not vaccinated. So we had to figure out how to keep them separated. It’s extremely, extremely stressful,” Cortes said.

Cortes says her oldest son’s test came back negative for COVID-19 but says it’s one of the many reasons why she wants her youngest child vaccinated as soon as possible.

“It would give us a sense of peace for a little bit. That worry of COVID-19 and being exposed,” she said.

Dr. Bennett hopes that pending approval will have a ripple effect in our community.

“I think it’ll be a great relief to parents, a great relief to schools, to get these kids vaccinated,” Bennett said.

“We’re hopeful that as we add the younger generation to five to 11-year-olds, which we hope will happen in the next month or so, that we will also pick up some of the 12 to 18-year-olds who haven’t been vaccinated so far,” she added.

The agency could authorize a vaccine for younger children in a matter of weeks instead of months depending on the quality of data that companies provide them, FDA officials said.