People 70 and Over Now Eligible for the Coronavirus Vaccine in Louisiana: What You Need to Know | Coronavirus vaccine

The coronavirus vaccine is now available in Louisiana for people 70 and older at specific pharmacies in the state, health officials said Monday.

See the map of locations.

The vaccine is available at 107 pharmacies in 51 of the state’s 64 parishes. Officials expect each pharmacy to receive around 100 doses this week. Appointments are required and walk-in patients will not be vaccinated, LDH officials said.

Who is eligible for the vaccine?

Here’s who is currently eligible to get the coronavirus vaccine at pharmacies:

• People aged 70 and over
• Schools for students, residents and paramedics
• End-stage renal disease facility staff and patients
• Home agency patients and staff
• Ambulatory and outpatient health personnel

The priority group has about 640,000 eligible people, state officials estimated.

Vaccines are administered elsewhere in Louisiana to health workers in level 1 and 2 hospitals, staff and residents of nursing homes and long-term care facilities, emergency medical service workers, and firefighters.

List of locations

Here is the list of pharmacies in the New Orleans metro where the vaccine is available. You must make an appointment before going to the pharmacy.

Here are the places in the New Orleans subway where eligible people can get vaccinated by appointment:

Parish of Orleans

Ochsner Pharmacy and Wellness Lake Terrace, 1532, boul. Robert E Lee. (504) 226-2033

Broad Avenue Pharmacy, 1400 N. Broad Street. (504) 309-4384

Carr Drugs # 1, 3500 Holiday Drive. (504) 367-5724

Crescent City Pharmacy, 2240 Simon Bolivar Avenue (504) 267-4100

Michoud Pharmacy, 4646 boul. Michoud (504) 435-1422

St. Bernard Drugs LLC # 3, 10200 Chef Liar Highway. (504) 242-1100

Jefferson Parish

Ochsner Pharmacy and Wellness, 200 W Esplanade Ave., Kenner. (504) 464-8250

Ochsner Pharmacy and Wellness West Bank, 2500 Belle Chasse Highway, Gretna. (504) 595-8180

Pharmacy A-1, 3501 Severn Avenue, Metairie. (504) 875-2330

Comeaux Pharmacy, 2305 West Esplanade Ave., Kenner. (504) 305-1745

NOLA Discount Pharmacy of Metairie, 1107 Veterans Blvd. (504) 835-6060

Westbank Pharmacy, 3709 Westbank Highway, Harvey. (504) 340-0777

Saint-Tammany Parish

Oschner Pharmacy and Welfare, 1000 Ochsner Blvd., Covington. (985) 871-2549

Ochsner Pharmacy and Wellness Slidell Memorial, 1051, boulevard Gause. (985) 639-3726

Baham Pharmacy & Wellness, 3916 Highway 22, Mandeville. (985) 273-5099

Miley Meds Pharmacy, 64288 Highway 41, Pearl River. (985) 256-7222

Medicine Shoppe, 999 Robert Boulevard, Slidell. (985) 643-7894

Saint Bernard

Walgreens, 100 W, Judge Perez Drive, Chalmette.

Saint Charles

Oschner Pharmacy and Welfare, 13100 River Road, Destrehan. (985) 240-4610

NOLA Discount Pharmacy of Destrehan, 3001 Ormond Boulevard. (985) 307-0800

Saint Jean Baptist

Medicine Shoppe, 70 Dominican Drive, LaPlace. (985) 652-1245

Which vaccine?

Officials have approved two coronavirus vaccines for use in the United States – one from Pfizer and one from Moderna. They both require two injections given a few weeks apart for long-term protection.

The Moderna vaccine will be available at drugstores in Louisiana, according to the LDH website.

People vaccinated with Pfizer vaccine should receive the second dose 21 days after the first dose. Those who receive Moderna vaccine should receive the second dose 28 days after the first dose.

How much will it cost?

Doses of the vaccine purchased with U.S. tax dollars will be free to the person receiving the vaccine, health officials said. However, providers may charge an administrative fee or for an office visit.

It was not immediately clear whether there would be charges at pharmacies.

Do I still have to wear a mask after being vaccinated?

Yes, masks and social distancing will still be recommended for some time after vaccination.

Current vaccines require two injections and the effect of vaccinations is usually not immediate.

People are expected to achieve some level of protection within two weeks of the first shot. But full protection may not happen for a few weeks after the second shot.

It is not yet clear whether the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines fully protect people from infection or just from symptoms. This means that vaccinated people might still be able to become infected and transmit the virus, although this is likely at a much lower rate, said Deborah Fuller, a vaccine expert at the University of Washington.

How does the coronavirus vaccine work?

Unlike many vaccines, the coronavirus vaccine does not contain a dead or weakened virus that triggers an immune response. Instead, officials said, the COVID-19 vaccine contains a genetic instruction manual that tells your immune system how to respond and protect you from exposure to the real virus.

The technology used in vaccines is called mRNA, or messenger RNA, health officials said. This is the first time that mRNA has been used in a vaccine, but the effect is the same as other vaccines, they said.

Who is next on the priority list?

The State is currently on priority group 1-B, level one. The next group is level two, which has approximately 318,750 people.

There was not yet an immediate schedule for vaccines for this group.

The group includes:

• K-12 school and daycare staff
• Transit workers
• Grocery store workers and other deemed essential front-line workers
• Postal staff
• Support staff related to health (laboratories, mortuary, pharmacy)
• Essential government response personnel
• Judicial staff
• Department of Homeland Security personnel, National Guard (non-COVID deployed), Federal Intelligence and Security personnel, military personnel
• First responders not covered in phase 1A
• Correctional officers and jailers
• Medical transport services
• Shelter for homeless people and other staff of group homes / centers
• Agri-food and agricultural workers

Learn more about priority groups.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.