Starting tomorrow, October 20, states and other jurisdictions will be able to preorder doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine formulated for children ages 5 to 11, according to a federal planning document. The orders are in anticipation of a rollout that could begin as early as November 3.

The vaccine is not yet authorized by the Food and Drug Administration, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has not yet given the green light for its administration. But US officials are wasting no time in preparing to vaccinate as many children as possible as quickly as possible. There are an estimated 28 million children in the US between the ages of 5 to 11, and the US government says it has enough vaccine doses for all of them. Vaccine doses are planned to roll out at pediatricians' offices, pharmacies, health centers, and rural clinics when the time comes.

The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is currently available for people ages 12 and up. In late September, Pfizer and BioNTech submitted data to the FDA indicating that small doses of their vaccine—a third of the dose used for adults—could safely and robustly protect children ages 5 to 11 from COVID-19. On October 7, the companies formally requested that the FDA grant an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for the use of their vaccine in those youngsters.