Gov. Hochul touched on if she plans to make the COVID vaccine mandatory for eligible New York children.

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On Tuesday, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced 120 new pop-up vaccination sites will take place across New York over a 12-week-period as part of the #VaxtoSchool campaign to increase vaccination rates among younger New Yorkers.

Over the next 12 weeks, the State Department of Health will be working with localities, community-based organizations and healthcare centers to establish these new sites in all regions of the state, supporting the State's goal of significantly increasing vaccination rates among this demographic.

Hochul is hoping to increase the vaccine rate among eligible New York children. Currently, 54 percent of New Yorkers ages 12 to 17 are vaccinated, which is the lowest percentage of age group in New York.

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In partnership with the State, each region will be hosting two new events per week, and partners, host sites, and outreach efforts will be tailored to best meet the needs of the communities they are built to serve. Locations haven't been announced

"Since becoming Governor four weeks ago, I've made it clear that we need to bring children, teachers and staff back to school safely," Hochul stated. "With these pop-up vaccinations sites, we are ramping up our #VaxtoSchool campaign on the road and going into communities where vaccination rates are still lagging among young New Yorkers, so we can reach as many families as possible and make our schools safer for students and staff."

Children ages 12 to 17 are able to get the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, which is available under Emergency Use Authorization for children ages 12 to 15 and is fully approved for those ages 16 and older. The other COVID-19 vaccines are not yet authorized or approved for this age group.

Hochul adds as of now there's no plan to make the COVID-19 vaccine mandatory for New York students.

If you are a parent or guardian of a school-aged New Yorker, you can also visit vaccines.gov, text your ZIP code to 438829, or call 1-800-232-0233 to find a vaccine location closest to you. Make sure that the provider offers the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.

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While much is still unknown about the coronavirus and the future, what is known is that the currently available vaccines have gone through all three trial phases and are safe and effective. It will be necessary for as many Americans as possible to be vaccinated in order to finally return to some level of pre-pandemic normalcy, and hopefully these 30 answers provided here will help readers get vaccinated as soon they are able.

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