Local pharmacist is among the first to give children under 5 COVID-19 vaccines

A local pharmacist is one of the first to vaccinate children under five years old and some parents are referring to him as a superhero in the community.

SKIPPBACK, Pa. - The moment many parents have been waiting for is finally here: the day when they can get their young children vaccinated against COVID-19.

The Food and Drug Administration greenlighted the Moderna and Pfizer kid shots on Friday and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended them Saturday. In the U.S., COVID-19 vaccines were first tested and given in late 2020 to health care workers and older adults. Teens and school-age kids were added last year.

Doctor Mayak Amin, the owner of Skippback Pharmacy, was among the first to give the newly approved COVID vaccine to kids under five. For many people, he’s known as the superhero pharmacist who wears a cape to act as a quick distraction for children receiving their vaccines.

"Many parents in that age group of 6 months to 5 years old were not able to have protection for their children. And now this is one step closer for them to be protected," said Dr. Amin. "I had a mom in here earlier with tears in her eyes as she was walking out. She said, ‘You just saved our lives.’"

The approval of the vaccine for young children is a milestone for 17 million American kids, like 3-year-old Ben from Harleysville.

Megan Balaguer, Ben’s mom, says that she’s relieved by the FDA’s decision to finally get young children protected against COVID-19.

"We are very relieved. It feels like it’s a long time coming. It feels a little bit like we were forgotten the last year, but we’re really excited. We’ve been trying to keep him safe for the last 2 plus years," said Balaguer.

Dr. Amin is not a stranger to helping people in his community. The local superhero hosted a vaccination event for teens last year at North Penn High School as a part of his mission to vaccinate as many kids as possible.

"The goal for me is for kids to realize not to just get the vaccine now during COVID, but in general any vaccines," said Dr. Amin.

Many states do not allow pharmacists to vaccinate children under three, so parents should check with their county health department or their pediatrician about getting their young ones vaccinated.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.