Pennsylvania Medicaid Program: Vaccines for Kids Older Than Six Months Now Available

COVID-19 vaccines are now available for children 6 months through 5 years of age. As a result of the recommendation from the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) as well as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), nearly 20 million additional children are now eligible nationally for vaccination.

The pediatric COVID-19 vaccine is safe, and it is highly effective at protecting children against COVID-19-related illness, hospitalization, and death. Vaccinating children against COVID-19 is the best way to help keep families and communities healthy and schools safer this fall.

All children, including children who have already had COVID-19, should get vaccinated.

Distribution of pediatric vaccinations for these younger children has started across the country, and will be available at thousands of pediatric practices, pharmacies, Federally Qualified Health Centers, local health departments, clinics, and other locations. Children in this younger age group can be vaccinated with whichever vaccine is available (either Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech). Parents can reach out to their doctor, nurse, local pharmacy, or local health department, or visit vaccines.gov to see where vaccines for children are available.

Learn more about COVID-19 vaccines for children:

COVID-19 Vaccines for Children — Pennsylvania Department of Health
COVID-19 Vaccines for Children and Teens — Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Finding a Vaccine is Easy!

Many vaccine providers now take walk-ins and offer same-day appointments. You can find a vaccine provider near you:

Online – go to Vaccine Finder and search by zip code.
Text – send your zip code to GETVAX (438829) for English, or VACUNA (822862) for Spanish and receive three possible vaccination sites in your area, with phone numbers to call for an appointment.

Phone – if you need help or do not have internet access, call the PA Department of Health Hotline at 1-877-724-3258.

About the Pediatric Vaccine

Vaccine Dosage

The dosage for the pediatric COVID-19 is based on the child’s age on the day of vaccination, not the child’s size or weight. Children get a smaller dose of COVID-19 vaccine than teens and adults that is the right amount for their age group. COVID-19 primary series vaccination for children and teens. As of June 18, 2022:

Child’s Age	Pfizer-BioNTech	Moderna	J&J/Janssen
6 months–4 years old	3 dose primary series	2 dose primary series	Not authorized
5 years old	2 dose primary series	2 dose primary series	Not authorized
6–17 years old	2 dose primary series	2 dose primary series	Not authorized

More than 596 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine had been given in the United States since December 2020.

View the CDC COVID Data Tracker — See current total COVID-19 vaccinations administered in the United States.
Enroll in V-Safe — V-safe provides personalized and confidential health check-ins via text messages and web surveys so you can quickly and easily share with CDC how you, or your dependent, feel after getting a COVID-19 vaccine.

COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective. COVID-19 vaccines were evaluated in tens of thousands of participants in clinical trials. The vaccines met the FDA’s rigorous scientific standards for safety, effectiveness, and manufacturing quality needed to support authorization.

The Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson/Janssen COVID-19 vaccines will continue to undergo the most intensive safety monitoring in U.S. history. This monitoring includes using both established and new safety monitoring systems to make sure that COVID-19 vaccines are safe.

Spread Vaccine Awareness!

The Pennsylvania Department of Health has created a number of resources to help you share accurate vaccine information with children and families regarding the COVID-19 vaccines.