12 - 15 Year-Olds May Be Eligible for COVID Vaccine Thursday

Currently in New York State anyone 16 and older is eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, although 16 and 17 year olds can only receive the Pfizer vaccine. Many parents and schools have been looking forward to the day when their children under 16 become eligible.

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It looks like that could happen as early as tomorrow according to Governor Cuomo's Office, at least for kids 12 to 15 years of age. Yesterday Cuomo said that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the emergency use of the Pfizer vaccine to include kids 12 to 15. The next step is for the Center for Disease Control's advisory committee, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), will have a public meeting to review the data on the Pfizer vaccine and decide on recommending the vaccine for that age group to the Director of the CDC.

Once a recommendation is made, Dr. Howard Zucker who is New York's State Health Commissioner, will meet with New York State's Clinical Advisory Task Force for the final recommendation, authorizing vaccinations to begin right away for 12- to 15-year-olds across the state and that can happen as soon as tomorrow (May 13).

If that should happen or WHEN it happens because it seems inevitable, remember that any state-run mass vaccination site is accepting first dose walk-ins and that of course includes SUNY Oneonta, open 7 days a week in the Alumni Field House. Once a walk-in receives their first dose of the vaccine, they will automatically be scheduled for a follow-up dose at the same site.

Find out more at covid19vaccine.health.ny.gov.

KEEP READING: Here are the most popular baby names in every state

Using March 2019 data from the Social Security Administration, Stacker compiled a list of the most popular names in each of the 50 states and Washington D.C., according to their 2018 SSA rankings. The top five boy names and top five girl names are listed for each state, as well as the number of babies born in 2018 with that name. Historically common names like Michael only made the top five in three states, while the less common name Harper ranks in the top five for 22 states.

Curious what names are trending in your home state? Keep reading to see if your name made the top five -- or to find inspiration for naming your baby.