HOUSTON — Texas Children's Hospital is scheduling COVID-19 vaccine appointments for children in the Houston area as young as 5 years old, according to their website.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID vaccine for emergency use in children ages 5-11 on Friday.
The decision will still need to be approved by the CDC before kids can start getting the shots.
Experts said there is a lower risk of severe COVID-19 in younger children compared to adults, however, the age group has faced substantial illness, including over 8,300 hospitalizations.
"Texas Children’s is excited to kick off this next step in protecting the community during the COVID-19 pandemic," hospital officials said in a statement.
On the TCH website, the earliest appointments are for Nov. 6. However, were told this date could be moved to earlier following authorization for children form the Center for Disease Control and the Texas government.
Child must be at least 5 years old at the time of the appointment.
Click here to be redirected to the hospital's appointment portal.
Earlier in the week, an FDA advisory panel voted unanimously that the vaccine benefits in preventing coronavirus in children outweigh the potential risks.
The FDA isn’t bound by the panel’s recommendation, but if the agency agrees, there’s still another step. Next week, the CDC will have to decide whether to recommend the shots and which youngsters should get them.
Full-strength shots made by Pfizer and its partner BioNTech already are recommended for everyone 12 and older, but pediatricians and many parents are clamoring for protection for younger children.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.