Shelby County Health Department offers booster shots for young children

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - Nearly 25% of children ages 5-11 in Shelby County have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. The Shelby County Health Department is now offering booster shots to that age group.

As of Oct. 15, 34 children in that age group have received a third dose.

This comes days after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the shot for younger children.

Medical Director for Infectious Disease for Baptist Memorial Healthcare, Dr. Steve Threlkeld, said completing the vaccine regime will be vital for all eligible people this fall and winter.

“We’re kind of looking into the phase of a season where we may have RSV, the flu, and COVID,” Threlkeld explained. “The one thing that boosters are pretty clearly good at is keeping you from getting even the milder infection.”

The Shelby County Health Department is offering free booster shots to children ages 5 to 11 every weekday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

The shots are only available to children who have completed the two-dose Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine series. The booster shots are offered on a walk-in basis.

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