COVID Vaccine in California: Here’s How Newly Eligible People Can Get an Appointment

LOS ANGELES (KABC) – With California officially opening vaccine eligibility for those 50 and over later this week, is it possible to make an appointment now? It depends on where you live and where you search online.

The hunt for appointments is on. At Riverside University Health System, Hugo Alvarez is the Director of Patient Access. He’s been helping match people to vaccines since the first deployment.

“Be a little patient with the process,” he said. “Let it unfold.”

Alvarez said to turn to health services to begin your research.

“The county website will always be your first and main point of contact,” he said.

If you’re 50 or over and live or work in Long Beach, the city has announced that you can book an appointment by signing up through VaxLB.

And while you can’t find the 50+ category on the LA County website just yet, health officials have said they expect appointments to be available by mid-month. week. They also suggest consulting different pharmacy sites.

A quick search of Costco’s website connects you to the LA County site, which reveals no availability for people 50 or older. The same goes for pharmacies like Walgreens, Rite Aid, and CVS.

However, on the Carbon Health website under coronavirus then vaccines, you can see a window for this category and availability. Eyewitness News reporter Denise Dador was able to make an appointment for Tuesday. The site also lists vaccines administered at different sites.

Alvarez said it doesn’t matter which vaccine is available to you first, don’t wait.

California to extend vaccine eligibility to all people 16 years of age and older starting April 15

“The sooner we get everyone or the high percentage of our community vaccinated, I think the sooner we will feel like we’re back to some kind of normalcy,” he said.

Vaccine eligibility for Californians 16 and older begins April 15.

While reluctance to get vaccinated is still a problem, Alvarez said that with so many other family members and friends already vaccinated, he is seeing a wave of willpower.

“Summer is fast approaching,” he says. “Graduation is coming, and I don’t think we’re ready for a 2020 rehearsal with these special moments.”