Now eligible to receive a COVID-19 booster, children ages 5-11 headed to vaccination sites across the Bay Area Friday to get the shot.
Several families NBC Bay Area spoke with said they made a booster appointment as soon as they saw the FDA approval come down. A few students even got out of school for an hour or two to get their shot.
Zoe Shepherd, 11, was among the first children to get a booster shot in Santa Clara County.
“I have been on my phone trying to get registered for the last couple days," Jessica Shepherd, Zoe's mom, said. "It just opened up this morning, so I tried to grab the first spot that I could."
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Many said they've been keeping an eye on the latest surge and thought sooner was better than later, especially those with trips planned for the summer.
"The latest omicron wave just seems to be hitting California, and so we want him to be safe and get his immunity up," parent Mangest Bhinbarkal said.
The FDA approval comes as California's positivity rate hits 6% and the state is reporting more than 9,000 cases per day.
"We're seeing over 1,000 cases a day, which is up as much as 10 times more than what we're seeing in the past," said Dr. Ahmad Kamal, director of healthcare preparedness for Santa Clara County.
Some experts and parents say, for now, they're not convinced boosters are a necessity for the 5-11 age group.
