Half of residents ages 16 and older have been fully vaccinated. Written By: Matthew Guerry | × A coronavirus graphic. Courtesy of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ST. PAUL — Minnesotans are responding with interest to the availability of COVID-19 vaccines for younger children now that they are eligible to get them, state officials said Thursday, May 13. Youths as young as 12 in Minnesota can, with a parent or guardian's consent, make appointments or visit walk-in clinics to receive a shot of the Pfizer vaccine, which federal health regulators this week approved for broader use. "As soon as some of our registration portals had been changed to accommodate for 12-plus, all of those appointments started snatching up really quick," Minnesota Department of Commerce Deputy Commissioner Anne O'Connor said at a Thursday news conference in St. Paul. "All of the sites will be opening up more appointments for next week, so there's going to be slots available."