Peoria residents get jump on vaccinating their children
Launch for ages 5-11 keeps local pediatricians’ offices busy
With the recent approval and release of the COVID-19 vaccine for ages 5-11, some children in Peoria are getting an early jump on being protected.
Pleasant Pediatrics, which has six locations throughout the Valley including four in Peoria, administered vaccinations beginning Nov. 2.
Nichole Sipple, office manager for the Pleasant Pediatrics location on Lake Pleasant Parkway, said the vaccine is open to all children, including those who are not patients of the office. They are also offering the shot to people of all ages free of charge.
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With the recent approval and release of the COVID-19 vaccine for ages 5-11, some children in Peoria are getting an early jump on being protected.
Pleasant Pediatrics, which has six locations throughout the Valley including four in Peoria, administered vaccinations beginning Nov. 2.
Nichole Sipple, office manager for the Pleasant Pediatrics location on Lake Pleasant Parkway, said the vaccine is open to all children, including those who are not patients of the office. They are also offering the shot to people of all ages free of charge.
“We hope the public knows that you don’t need to have insurance for the vaccine. Some people may be confused and might opt out thinking there is a financial cost,” she said. “We don’t want finances to be a deterrent.”
Thousands of pediatricians, including Pleasant Pediatrics, pre-ordered doses, and Pfizer began shipments soon after the Food and Drug Administration’s decision Friday to authorize emergency use. Pfizer said it expects to make 19,000 shipments totaling about 11 million doses in the next several days, and that millions more will be available to order on a weekly basis.
Pleasant Pediatrics has been a pandemic provider throughout the pandemic.
Sipple said since the vaccine for children was approved, the office has received a lot of activity from patients and others hoping to get their children vaccinated.
There has been a positive response and the office will have a very full schedule over the next few days, she said.
“Some parents wanted this vaccine a long time ago,” Sipple said.
The vaccine — one-third the dose given to older children and adults and administered with kid-sized needles — requires two doses three weeks apart, plus two more weeks for full protection to kick in.
Peoria parent Kristin Fray said she is incredibly excited the COVID-19 vaccine has been approved for the 5-11 year old age group.
She said her daughter does not like getting shots, but will make an exception for this one, especially if it means returning to normal, like taking a dance class when she is fully vaccinated.
Not knowing how coordinated the vaccine distribution would be, Fray planned ahead and made her an appointment for this Friday afternoon.
“As a parent, I am feeling relief, but I know it takes five weeks to be fully protected after both doses. So we will not change our behavior just yet,” Fray said.
Vaccines are not required in the Peoria Unified School District, but schools have seen cases grow since the emergence of the Delta Variant.
PUSD spokeswoman Danielle Airey said the district will be sharing Maricopa County’s information and guidelines regarding this next round of vaccinations for those families who are interested.
“We are hopeful that the access to vaccines will help to reduce the number of cases in our community and schools,” she said.
Editor's note: The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Philip Haldiman can be reached at phaldiman@iniusa.org, or on Twitter @philiphaldiman.
Meet Philip Haldiman is an award-winning journalist who most recently took first place for investigative reporting in 2023 from Arizona Newspapers Association. He joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in 2015, covering Sun City West his first year. Since 2016, he has covered the city of Peoria. Prior to coming to INI, he was a reporter with The Arizona Republic for seven years, covering numerous cities throughout the Valley. Before that, he was a freelance writer.
Community: Haldiman spearheads the Peoria Independent Hometown Heroes Awards program, honoring local individuals and businesses that give back to the community. He has hosted local candidate forums over the years and is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists. Haldiman also served as a member of the Journalism Program Community Advisory Board at Glendale Community College. Outside journalism, Haldiman served as a member of the city of Peoria Complete Count Committee for the Census, 2019-2020. Lastly, he has served as a member of his HOA governing board since 2021.
Education: Arizona State University with a BA in Journalism and Mass Communications and a BA in Theater.
Random Fact: Haldiman is a fourth-generation Arizonan as well as wrote and produced an autobiographical comic book about his time spent in Hollywood and his life as a cult film star.
Hobbies: He enjoys hiking Arizona’s mountainous landscapes and is currently working on a play for the stage.
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