COVID-19 – Vaccinations for Children

CDC recommends COVID-19 vaccines for everyone six months and older. Parents and caregivers can get their children six months through 5 years of age vaccinated with the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines to better protect them from COVID-19. All children, including children who have already had COVID-19, should get vaccinated. 

You can visit COVID.gov as a new one-stop shop website that helps all people in the United States gain even better access to lifesaving tools like vaccines, tests, treatments, and masks, as well as get the latest updates on COVID-19 in their area. This site (available in English, Spanish, and Chinese) includes a Test-to-Treat locator to help people access pharmacies and community health centers across the nation where people can get tested for COVID-19 and receive appropriate treatments if they need them. 

Recommendations, Information, and Resources

The CDC recommends children ages six months and older get a COVID-19 vaccine to help protect against COVID-19. While COVID-19 tends to be milder in children compared with adults, it can make children very sick and cause children to be hospitalized. In some situations, the complications from infection can lead to death.

Although children are at a lower risk of becoming severely ill with COVID-19 compared with adults, children can: 

• Be infected with the virus that causes COVID-19
• Get very sick from COVID-19
• Have both short and long-term health complications from COVID-19
• Spread COVID-19 to others

COVID-19 Vaccines Are Free and available to everyone at no cost. HRSA also offers no-cost COVID-19 testing, treatment, and vaccine information, including fact sheets to help both patients and providers understand their rights and responsibilities regarding access.

Find a COVID-19 Vaccine for Children Six Months and Older

• The federal government is providing the COVID-19 vaccine free of charge to all people living in the United States, regardless of their immigration or health insurance status.
• Check with your child’s healthcare provider about whether they offer COVID-19 vaccination.
• Check your local pharmacy’s website to see if vaccination walk-ins or appointments are available for children.
• Contact your state, territorial, local, or tribal health department for more information.
• Search vaccines.gov, text your ZIP code to 438829, or call 1-800-232-0233 to find locations near you.