Credit Katie Basile / KYUK
The Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation is encouraging parents across the region to sign their 12-to-15-year-olds up for a COVID-19 vaccine. YKHC began vaccinating this age group in Bethel on May 13, and will begin sending vaccines to villages the week of May 17.
YKHC President and CEO Dan Winkleman said that his 15-year-old daughter Katherine got her first COVID-19 vaccine at 9 a.m. on May 13, the first day they became available to this age group. During a virtual town hall that evening to answer questions about the vaccine, he called it a “a great, great day.” He also said that his daughter didn’t have any side effects.
Credit Anna Rose MacArthur / KYUK
The Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation said that it intends to support full-time, in-person schooling in the fall regardless of COVID-19 transmission rates in the region.
YKHC made the announcement in a press release on May 12. The health corporation said that it is working with school districts on plans to safely hold in-person schooling for the fall semester and will release the plan by the end of July.
“In-person learning benefits children in so many ways,” YKHC Chief of Staff Dr. Ellen Hodges said. “With everyone’s cooperation, kids can safely return to school five days per week this fall and participate in extracurricular activities, including sports.”
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If the vaccine is endorsed, YKHC would begin vaccinating 12-15 year olds in Bethel right after the recommendation from the CDC comes in. Vaccinations in villages would begin the following week. YKHC estimates that about 2,800 teenagers in this age group live in the region. Each teen would need written permission from a parent to be vaccinated.
YKHC Chief of Staff Dr. Ellen Hodges began encouraging parents and guardians to sign up their 12-15 year olds for the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine in April.
“I think it’s a great way to keep our kids safe, and I know all of us are sort of desperate to get our kids back in school and get back to school sports. This is our way to get there: by vaccinating that age group,” Hodges told KYUK in April.
Credit Greg Kim / KYUK
The Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation has changed its COVID-19 testing hours. Currently, people in Bethel hoping to get an unscheduled COVID-19 test can do so at the drive through testing site across from the hospital. The site is now only open on Fridays from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. for unscheduled appointments.
Testing is also open to all at the Bethel Alaska Airlines terminal when daily flights arrive at noon and 7 p.m. If you need to schedule a test outside of those hours, you can call YKHC’s COVID-19 hotline at 543-6949.
YKHC also continues to vaccinate residents in the Y-K Delta against the virus, and urges everyone aged 16 and older to register for a vaccine. A spokesperson for YKHC said that staff can give rides to and from the hospital for those with vaccination appointments, and is also offering to vaccinate people at home. To schedule a vaccination, call 543-6949 or register online on YKHC’s website.
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