What you need to know to get a COVID-19 vaccine in Brazos County

BRYAN, Texas (KBTX) – Over the past month, there has been a lot of new information released, almost daily, regarding the distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine to as many people as possible. Here’s what we know about the process at this point:

WHERE CAN I GET A VACCINE

Texas continues to receive doses of the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines and distribute statewide to hospitals, pharmacies, and other clinics.

If you are in Phase 1 and are eligible to receive the vaccine, please visit the COVID-19 Vaccination Center Providers page to find a center near you and learn how to register.

You can also check the websites of the vaccine suppliers listed on the Texas COVID-19 Vaccine Availability map to see if they currently have enough vaccines.

Currently, Baylor Scott & White Health at College Station only provides vaccines to those who are eligible for Phase 1A and to its own patients entering Phase 1B. Click here to learn more about the Baylor Scott & White Health distribution plan.

St. Joseph Health has been designated as a state vaccination center and welcomes anyone who is eligible to register for a vaccine here on its website. However, the doses are very limited, and the few doses here have already been allocated. You can still sign up for future shipments, but there is no deadline for when these will be available.

A distribution operation is planned in the future at the Brazos Center in Bryan, but this plan is still ongoing. A dry run is scheduled for Monday, January 18, but it is not open to the public at the moment. The county is also working to provide a phone number for residents to use if they have more questions, transportation to central Brazos, and a registration portal that residents can use to register online BUT these services are not in place at the moment. More information on this will be published in the near future.

There are a handful of other distribution points in Brazos County, including some HEB pharmacies, but at the moment they are also running low on vaccines.

A COVID-19 vaccination clinic is available Saturday, January 16 in Temple for veterans aged 75 and over. Click here for more details.

Remember:

• Do not go to a hospital or clinic looking for a vaccine.
• Instead, please visit their website for information on vaccine availability.
• Call only if the website does not answer your questions.

NOT ENOUGH VACCINES AVAILABLE

Doses of vaccine sent by the state are currently limited in the Brazos Valley. Even those who are eligible to receive the vaccine are put on a waiting list until more supplies arrive. Health officials ask everyone to be patient during the waiting period.

It is not known when the next shipments will arrive. It is also not known how many will be sent in the next batch. This is part of the challenge for suppliers when setting up a distribution system. Continue to monitor the website pages for local providers and KBTX for up-to-date information on vaccine distribution.

WHO CAN GET A VACCINE NOW?

In the state of Texas, front-line healthcare workers and residents of long-term care facilities (referred to as phase 1A) as well as people over the age of 65 or with a chronic illness that puts them at risk for increased risk of serious illness due to COVID-19 (referred to as phase 1B) are currently eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

Recipients of phase 1B include:

• People 65 and over
• People 16 years of age and older with at least one chronic disease that puts them at increased risk for serious illness from the virus that causes COVID-19, such as, but not limited to: Cancer Chronic kidney disease COPD (disease chronic obstructive pulmonary) Heart disease, such as heart failure, coronary artery disease or cardiomyopathies Solid organ transplantation Obesity and severe obesity (body mass index of 30 kg / m2 or more) Pregnancy Sickle cell disease Type 2 diabetes mellitus

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After phase 1, who will be vaccinated next and when?

Spring 2021 is the best estimate of when the vaccine will be available to the general public, but that may change. It depends on vaccine production and how quickly other vaccines become available. The Expert Group on Vaccine Allocation (EVAP) is examining criteria that could be used for the later stages of vaccine distribution. This web page will be updated when these decisions are made.

When will teachers, critical infrastructure workers, essential workers and other frontline workers not included in 1A be eligible for the vaccine?

Spring 2021 is the best estimate of when the vaccine will be available to the general public which is not considered phase 1B. No specific profession or group is specifically identified in 1B; however, all occupations will have people who meet criteria 1B. It depends on vaccine production and how quickly other vaccines become available.

Additional information for educators and school staff can be found in the Texas Education Agency (TEA) K-12 COVID-19 Vaccine FAQ.

Should I get vaccinated if I have already recovered from COVID-19?

Yes. The immunity from the COVID-19 vaccine may last longer than the natural immunity you get if you have had COVID-19 before.

People who currently have COVID-19 should not be vaccinated while they are sick.

Should everyone get vaccinated with a COVID-19 vaccine?

No. Getting vaccinated is voluntary and cannot be required since the vaccine is distributed under an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA). After vaccines are fully licensed, different laws may apply. Either way, getting the COVID-19 vaccine is another way to protect yourself and others from COVID-19 and its spread.

CLICK HERE TO BE TAKEN TO THE STATE VACCINE DISTRIBUTION DASHBOARD: Please note that this feature may work best on a desktop computer. Health officials also point out that the data on this page may be delayed compared to real-time reports from local providers.

How are COVID-19 vaccines different from other vaccines?

Different types of vaccines work in different ways to provide protection. But each type of vaccine works by teaching our bodies to make cells that trigger an immune response. This immune response, which produces antibodies, is what protects us from infection if the real virus enters our body.

Currently, there are three main types of COVID-19 vaccines that are or will soon be the subject of large-scale clinical trials (phase 3) in the United States:

• MRNA vaccines
• Subunit protein vaccines
• Vector vaccines

COVID-19 vaccines do not use the live virus and cannot give you COVID-19. The vaccine does not alter your DNA. The COVID-19 vaccination will help protect you by creating an immune response without having to get sick.

To learn more about how COVID-19 vaccines work, see the Understanding How COVID-19 Vaccines Work on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website.

Why should I take the COVID-19 vaccine?

Getting this vaccine once it’s available to you is a step you can take to get the Texas economy and our daily lives back to normal.

How do you know if the COVID-19 vaccine is safe?

Safety is a top priority as federal partners work to make COVID-19 vaccines available. The new COVID-19 vaccines have been tested in tens of thousands of volunteers in clinical trials. Vaccines are only allowed if they are found to be safe.

Even though they haven’t found any safety issues during clinical trials, the CDC and other federal partners will continue to monitor new vaccines. They monitor serious side effects (or “adverse events”) using vaccine safety monitoring systems, like the new V-safe After Vaccination Health Checker app.

For the most recent information, see the Vaccine Safety section of the CDC website.

To learn more about the CDC’s new vaccine safety monitoring system, see the V-safe After Vaccination Health Checker section of the CDC website.

Who decides how many vaccines Texas receives?

The CDC determines the number of vaccine doses Texas will receive each week, based on population. Once the Texas Department of State (DSHS) Health Services are notified of the expected number of doses for the following week, DSHS staff present vaccine distribution options to the Expert Vaccine Allocation Panel (EVAP). The committee makes changes and recommendations to the Health Commissioner, who makes the final decision on this week’s cast.

Who decides how to distribute the vaccine in Texas?

In Texas, DSHS distributes the vaccine under the direction of the EVAP, appointed by the Health Commissioner, Dr John Hellerstedt.

How did the DSHS decide who to vaccinate first?

The health commissioner appointed an EVAP to make recommendations on vaccine allocation decisions. This includes identifying which groups should be vaccinated first. The goal is to provide the best possible protection to vulnerable populations and critical state resources. EVAP has developed Vaccine Allocation Guidelines (PDF) that form the basis of the vaccine allocation process in Texas.

For more vaccine FAQs, click here.

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