Colorado has one of the highest rates of child vaccination

FILE – Syringes and colorful bandages are prepared as children from local schools prepare to get COVID-19 vaccines in Pittsfield, Mass., on Monday Dec. 13, 2021. (Ben Garver/The Berkshire Eagle via AP, File)

by: DJ Summers

Posted: Jun 17, 2022 / 05:04 PM MDT

Updated: Jun 17, 2022 / 05:04 PM MDT

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DENVER (KDVR) — Regulators from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Friday authorized the first COVID-19 shots for infants and preschoolers. Vaccinations could begin as soon as next week.

The approval would apply to children between the ages of 6 months and 5 years. U.S. Census records count roughly 337,000 in Colorado under the age of 5, the majority of whom would be eligible for vaccination.

Records suggest Colorado’s children under 5 years old would be vaccinated at a quick clip. According to data compiled by the Kaiser Family Foundation, Coloradans are among the nation’s most likely to vaccinate their young children.

Colorado has the nation’s 22nd-highest number of children under 5. According to the foundation, 24.2% of children 5-11 have been vaccinated with at least one dose, the nation’s ninth-highest percentage.

Rates of child vaccination tend to be highest in New England and the Pacific Northwest and lowest in the Southeast. Vermont has vaccinated 45.6% of its children, while West Virginia has vaccinated only 3.6%.