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MDHHS Expanding Neighborhood COVID Testing Sites To Offer Vaccine For Michigan Children Ages 5-11

(CBS Detroit) -- With COVID cases still on the rise, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) announced neighborhood testing sites are expanding to offer vaccines for children ages 5 to 11.

"Expanding access at our neighborhood testing sites make it easier for families to vaccinate their children by bringing vaccine clinics to where people are in our communities, including rural and other areas that are harder to reach," MDHHS Director Elizabeth Hertel said in a statement. "Vaccination remains the best protection against COVID-19, and we urge everyone to get vaccinated and boosted as soon as possible."

On Nov. 2, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) voted to recommend giving Pfizer's child-sized dose of coronavirus vaccine to children ages 5-11. The MDHHS announced later that month that more than 10% of children in the state have received at least their first dose.

More than 70% of Michiganders 16 and older have received at least one dose, surpassing a vaccination milestone last month that was set by the state.

The Food and Drug Administration recently approved booster shots for ages 16 and 17.

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