72% of Los Angeles County residents aged 12 and up now fully vaccinated against COVID
LOS ANGELES - As vaccination efforts continue, Los Angeles County officials announced Wednesday that 72% of all Los Angeles County residents 12 and up have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
Additionally, 80% of all county residents 12 and up are now vaccinated with at least one dose, according to county Supervisor Janice Hahn.
"To everyone who has helped us get this far — thank you. Your actions have saved lives," Hahn wrote on Twitter.
Los Angeles County's health director presented a set of criteria Tuesday being monitored for a possible lifting of mask-wearing mandates at large outdoor events and in indoor settings such as workplaces – one of which required a full-vaccination rate of 80% of residents aged 12 and older.
RELATED: Los Angeles County lays out requirements for lifting COVID-19 mask mandate
Among the county's overall population of 10.3 million people, including those under age 12 who aren't yet eligible for the shots, 69% have received at least one dose, and 61% are fully vaccinated.
Black residents continue to have the lowest vaccination rates, with just 56% having received at least one dose. That compares with 64% of Latino/a residents, 74% of white residents and 83% of Asians.
Younger Black residents have particularly low vaccination rates, with the youngest age group at 43% with at least one dose.
The county will begin offering pediatric doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine to kids aged 5-11 Wednesday, one day after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention gave final approval of the shots.
The county received its first shipment of the vaccines on Tuesday, and county officials will gather at a park in East Los Angeles late this afternoon to mark the beginning of the vaccination effort for young children.
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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the pediatric shots last week, and a CDC advisory committee OK'd them Tuesday morning. CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky gave final approval Tuesday afternoon, making the shots immediately available to those age 5-11.
Los Angeles County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said there are 900 providers in the county that are ready to administer the pediatric doses.
"Sites that receive doses today (Tuesday) might be able to start vaccinations as early as (Wednesday) afternoon or Thursday," Ferrer told the county Board of Supervisors on Tuesday.
She said that while the county received its first shipment of pediatric doses Tuesday, it expects to receive a total of nearly 300,000 doses within the next week to 10 days.
According to Ferrer, there are about 900,000 kids aged 5-11 in the county.
"We don't anticipate scarcity, and we expect that there will be ample vaccines to meet demand," she said.
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While the pediatric shots are roughly one-third of the dosage than the adult vaccine, the doses must be given on the same schedule -- two shots administered 21 days apart. Ferrer noted that children must have a signed consent form from an adult to receive the shot, and some vaccination sites require them to be accompanied by an adult.
The pediatric shots will be offered under an emergency use authorization, the same authorization given to the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines, and to the Pfizer vaccine for people age 12-15. Pfizer's vaccine has full federal approval for people aged 16 and up.
Appointments for vaccines can be made through the state's MyTurn website, although many vaccination sites offer shots without appointments.
According to Ferrer, there have been more than 79,000 COVID cases during the pandemic among children age 5-11 in the county, and one fatality. About 37,000 cases have occurred in kids up to age 4, also with one death, and more than 89,000 cases in those aged 12-17, with five deaths.
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CNS contributed to this report.