[ad_1]
Santa Clara County residents 65 and older are now eligible for the vaccine, county officials said on Tuesday.
Residents in this age range can now schedule appointments through the county’s website for openings from Wednesday onwards.
Expanded eligibility follows current state guidelines for vaccine allocation.
“Older residents and those living in skilled nursing care facilities continue to be the population most at risk of serious illness and death from COVID-19,” said Dr Monika Roy, head of deputy county public health.
As of Monday, more than 160,300 people were vaccinated in Santa Clara County by the county, private health care providers and other vaccine distributors.
The county health system is the largest provider of the COVID-19 vaccine, county officials said. So far, it has administered nearly 60,000 first doses and has a weekly capacity to provide 30,000 immunization appointments per week.
Residents can schedule appointments at mass vaccination sites located at the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds, Berger Drive in San Jose, and the Mountain View Community Center.
The county is also having eligible people vaccinated at several valley health centers, including up to 600 people a day in Gilroy, according to the county public health department.
“As the vaccine becomes available to more of our residents, the county continues its deep commitment to equity and access to our communities most at risk of contracting COVID-19,” said said Dr. Jennifer Tong, deputy chief medical officer of the Santa Clara County Health System.
The county is also working in partnership with community clinics and has launched a pilot mobile vaccination clinic to ensure access to vaccines for residents and staff of long-term care facilities.
“We are coordinating efforts with local fire departments and emergency medical service providers and dispatching vaccinators to the field to ensure that those most at risk can be vaccinated as quickly as possible,” Roy said.
County officials say the ability to expand vaccine eligibility depends on the vaccine supply.
This week, the county received 20,125 additional first doses of the vaccine, which is “far less than the county health systems have the capacity to deliver,” according to the county public health department.
Residents can get more information about vaccine allocation and administration by health care providers on the county’s COVID-19 vaccine dashboard.
To see the latest updates on vaccine eligibility or schedule an appointment for vaccination, people can visit sccfreevax.org.
[ad_2]
Source link