HAZEL PARK, Mich. (WXYZ) — More than 7,000 children have been signed up to get vaccinated at the Oakland County Health Division’s school vaccine clinics as of Monday.
“It is peace of mind. It is worth it,” said Robin Taylor, who brought her daughter to get vaccinated.
“It has been really hard for our families to get to where they need to go for the vaccine. And so having it right here on site, we have been asking for from the very beginning,” said Amy Kruppe, superintendent of Hazel Park Schools.
Kruppe says she hopes that the vaccines will help keep students learning in person by decreasing the chances of an outbreak.
“We at one point had 160 students and staff out until we did test to stay. We are hoping now that we have 46 staff and students out, this will bring it even lower,” Kruppe said.
Kate Guzman is administrator of medical services with the Oakland County Health Division.
She says Oakland County is acting relatively aggressively when it comes to getting vaccines out to children because health leaders believe it is the path to protecting the community in a way that studies show is safe. While some counties have not yet planned clinics in schools, Oakland County has plans already for vaccination events at 16 schools this month.
“Almost 4,000 kids were tested in this trial and it was found to be safe. The biggest side effect was a sore arm,” Guzman said.
You can learn more about the Oakland County Health Division’s Vaccine clinics at oaklandcountyvaccine.com.
