CARTER GIGLIO, 8, joined by service dog Barney of Hero Dogs, shows off the adhesive bandage over his injection site after being vaccinated Wednesday at Children’s National Hospital in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Area health officials Wednesday moved to set up for providing COVID-19 vaccinations for ages 5 to 11 after the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention authorized use of Pfizer-BioNTech’s scaled-down version for younger children.

The Dickinson-Iron District Health Department announced plans to conduct off-site COVID immunization clinics for ages 5 to 11 on:

— Monday at the Dickinson County Fairgrounds in Norway, with a second dose administered Monday, Nov. 29;

— Wednesday at Forest Park School in Crystal Falls, with the second dose set for Wednesday, Dec. 1.

Children will receive a vaccine dose that is about one-third the size of a regular adult dose.

Appointments are necessary; no walk-ins will be accepted. A parent or guardian must accompany children or adolescents to the clinic. Individuals attending the clinics will be required to wear a mask. To make an appointment, call the office directly at 906-774-1868 for Dickinson County or 906-265-9913 for Iron County.

Those with access to the internet are asked to print and fill out COVID-19 vaccination consent forms available at didhd.org in advance before arriving for an appointment to help keep the clinic flow moving. For those who are unable, consent forms will be available at time of check in.

There is no cost for COVID vaccinations, which the DIDHD advised have been proven safe and effective for anyone age 5 years and older and can help prevent severe illness, hospitalization and death from the virus. Those fully vaccinated are more likely to experience a milder or shorter illness compared to those who are unvaccinated. For more information, go to www.cdc.gov or contact the DIDHD at the telephone numbers listed earlier in the article.

Green Bay, Wis.-based Bellin Health will begin offering COVID-19 vaccinations for ages 5 to 11 on Friday at two clinics in the region.

Scheduling is available now at Bellin Health Iron Mountain, 440 Woodward Ave. in Iron Mountain, and at Bellin Health Marinette, 2820 Roosevelt Road in Marinette.

Bellin plans to expand vaccination availability to all its clinics as vaccine rollout proceeds. Individuals do not need to be Bellin patients to be vaccinated.

Vaccinations for ages 5 and older can be scheduled via the MyBellinHealth patient portal or by calling the Bellin Health COVID-19 Hotline at 920-445-7313. More information on COVID-19 vaccines and related topics is available at bellin.org/covid19.