The School District of Rhinelander, with the Oneida County Health Department, will host a vaccine clinic at the middle school and high school open house this Monday from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m.
The vaccine will be available without an appointment to any student 12 years or older.
Linda Conlon, director of the Oneida County Health Department, says getting vaccinated ahead of the school year is critical to limiting the spread of the Delta variant and making sure schools can stay open for in-person learning.
“Vaccination is a very important part of that,” she says. “Because vaccines are only approved for kids 12 and up, it’s important for us to get as many students vaccinated as possible, so that they are protecting younger kids, who are generally siblings, as well as themselves.”
Conlon says more kids are getting COVID-19 and becoming hospitalized because of it.
She also says the virus is spreading through households more easily than before.
Right now, about 32 percent of kids between the ages of 12 and 15 have gotten the COVID shot in Oneida County.
That’s higher than most surrounding counties, where sometimes less than 20 percent of kids in that age range have gotten vaccinated.
As the Delta variant spreads and as the start of the school year nears, Conlon says Oneida County has seen a slight increase in the number of young people getting vaccinated.
She hopes the vaccine clinic with the School District of Rhinelander’s open house will help that trend continue.
