Pending final federal and state approval, local providers and Lane County are ready to go

Nov. 3, 2021 —  In anticipation of full federal and state approval later this week for the Pfizer pediatric COVID-19 vaccine for children aged 5 to 11 years of age, Lane County Public Health (LCPH) is announcing information for parents and guardians. 

Over the past few months, Lane County has been working with local pediatric and family care practices, pharmacies, community-based organizations and schools to develop a comprehensive strategy to meet the demand for pediatric vaccinations in the first few weeks of availability. 

LCPH estimates that Lane County is home to approximately 25,000 children aged 5 to 11. While national surveys suggest that about one third of parents will seek vaccinations for newly eligible children as soon as possible, the Lane County pediatric partnership has developed capacity to meet a demand of 40 percent — approximately 10,000 kids — within the first several weeks of eligibility.

“Pediatric offices remain the best place to seek regular vaccinations,” said Dr. Patrick Luedtke, Lane County’s Public Health Officer, “and I’m so impressed by the efforts that pediatric and family care practices have implemented to provide vaccinations rapidly, including evening and weekend hours. But we recognize that not every parent will be able to access vaccinations this way, so we’ve worked with other providers, including pharmacies, and we’ve developed our own operational capacity through our COVID-19 Emergency Operations Center.”

Lane County has designed multiple clinic models to meet individual needs:

• Indoor clinics at the Lane Events Center Auditorium that will ultimately have the capacity for over 400 children per day;
• School-based clinics in partnership with Lane Education Services District and Lane County’s 16 school districts operating in the afternoons and evenings following regular school dismissal; and
• Community-led pediatric clinics in partnership with our community-based organization partners to ensure vaccine equity. 

“We’ve developed a strategy to fully vaccinate nearly 4,000 kids before the end of 2021,” said Dr. Jocelyn Warren, Lane County’s Public Health Administrator. “As this group of younger kids becomes eligible for vaccinations, we intend to provide an added level of attention and care in our operations. Our incredible staff and many of our volunteer Community Immunity Corps that provided mass vaccinations earlier this year are now ready to serve the children and families of Lane County. We’re so grateful for the incredible outpouring of volunteerism that continues to power our community wide efforts to protect all from COVID-19.”

Parents and guardians can schedule appointments at www.lanecounty.org/vaxclinics or by calling 541-682-1380.

Effective Nov. 9, all LCPH clinics will be by appointment only and the scheduling tool will be live by the morning of Friday, Nov. 5. 

LCPH Pediatric Clinic Schedule

Lane County Public Health is planning the following clinics for children ages 5 years-11 years for vaccination upon approval of the Pfizer pediatric COVID-19 Vaccination. All clinics for children ages 5-11 years are scheduled appointments only. There are not walk-in appointments at this time.

Clinics will open for scheduling the Friday before each week. Additional community-based and school clinics will announced on an ongoing basis; people can continue to check www.lanecounty.org/vaxclinics for the latest clinic schedule.

• West Lane: Saturday, Nov. 20, at Siuslaw Middle School, 2525 Oak St. in Florence, time to be announced

Many more dates are available through Eugene and Springfield locations, as well as drive-through clinics held at the Lane Event Center in Eugene.