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Registration to receive the COVID-19 vaccination was closed approximately five hours after it opened on Wednesday, when all available doses were assigned.
It is hoped that around 450 residents will receive their first of two injections on Monday, according to Denton County public health spokesperson Jennifer Rainey.
“The demand will obviously exceed the amount of supply available,” she said.
The Texas Phase 1B Vaccine Eligible Group includes people over the age of 65 and those over the age of 16 who are pregnant or have one or more chronic illnesses.
Rainey said most of those recorded on Wednesday were in Group 1B, but that doesn’t mean all of those in 1A were vaccinated. She said the state leadership ordered them not to prioritize one group over the other.
She said DCPH was aware that there were still health workers in the county who had not yet been vaccinated.
Rainey said the county health department had seven people answering phones to accept registrations on Wednesday with space for 30 more callers to wait on hold.
“We have registered everyone for the vaccine we have,” she said Thursday afternoon. “At the moment, we are not doing a waiting list.”
Denton County Commissioners are expected to consider allocating funds to purchase a vaccine management system at a Friday morning meeting.
The system is the product of a partnership between Microsoft and Mazik Global. It would cost $ 271,000 for the first year of operation and $ 186,000 each year thereafter, according to the county commissioners’ agenda item.
Rainey said county officials were hoping the system would allow the county to put residents on a waiting list for the vaccine.
It would also allow them to notify people by text and / or email when they are able to vaccinate and automatically remind them to make an appointment to receive their second dose of the vaccine.
The meeting will begin at 11 a.m. on Friday. Those who wish to follow up can do so online by going to dentoncounty.gov/remote or by calling 346-248-7799 or toll-free 1-888-475-4499 (for meeting ID, dial 764-412 814 #).
Rainey said DCPH recommends that people “check with your primary care provider or the local pharmacy as well, to determine when they will start immunizing their clients.
Reached by phone Thursday, Rainey said the county did not have any more notice than the general public of vaccine release schedules.
Texas State Department Health Services had updated distribution schedules for the upcoming week every Friday, but it was not immediately clear Thursday if and how New Year’s Day might affect that release.
MARSHALL REID can be reached at 940-566-6862 and via Twitter at @MarshallKReid.
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