Provider Alert! Adolescent Eligibility for Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine

Date: May 20, 2021

Attention: All Pediatric and Family Medicine Providers

Effective Date: May 12, 2021

Providers should monitor the Texas Children’s Health Plan (TCHP) Provider Portal regularly for alerts and updates associated to the COVID-19 event.  TCHP reserves the right to update and/or change this information without prior notice due to the evolving nature of the COVID-19 event.

Call to action: Texas Children’s Health Plan (TCHP) would like to make network providers aware of new guidance approved by the Food and Drug Administration and The Center for Disease Control’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. Effective, May 12, the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine is authorized for adolescents age 12 years old and older.
How this impacts providers: The Texas Department of State Health Services COVID-19 Pediatric Provider Toolkit is available here: https://www.dshs.texas.gov/immunize/covid19/COVIDpediatricproviderpacket.pdf

In an effort to increase the accessibility to the COVID-19 vaccination in underserved areas of Texas, the Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) and the Texas Military Department (TMD) announced the launch of the State Mobile Vaccination Team Call Center. Businesses or civic organizations can call 844-90-TEXAS and select option 3 to schedule a visit with a state mobile vaccine team to vaccinate employees, visitors, or members. Homebound Texans are also encouraged to call the hotline and select option 1 to request a state mobile vaccination team to visit their home.

Administration: COVID-19 and other vaccines may now be administered without regard to timing.  This includes simultaneous administration of COVID-19 and other vaccines on the same day, as well as co-administration within 14 days.

Next steps for providers: Providers with the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine available should begin administering it to their patients12 years old and older.

If you have any questions, please email Provider Network Management at: providerrelations@texaschildrens.org.
For access to all provider alerts, log into:
www.thecheckup.org or www.texaschildrenshealthplan.org/for-providers