Raleigh, NC – On Monday, teachers and school staff in Grade 3A of the North Carolina vaccine rollout can register to receive a vaccine in Wake County.
Each province will distribute vaccines to school and child carers in a different way, and vaccinations are expected to begin on Wednesday. Starting Monday, people who want to register for a vaccine in Wake County can go to wakegov.com/vaccine to fill out an online application form or call the 24/7 vaccine hotline at 919-250-1515.
People will have to answer “yes” to one of the following questions to register:
- Are you 65 or older?
- Are you a health professional?
- Do you work in daycare or a Pre-K to Grade 12 school?
- Do you need to be in person at work?
As soon as enough vaccines are available, people on the waiting list will be contacted by email, telephone or text message. They can then make an appointment online or over the phone to get their vaccine. Appointments for the second dose are scheduled at the first appointment.
North Carolina has been vaccinating seniors 65 and older and long-term residents and staff for months.
Earlier in February, Governor Roy Cooper said that all K-12 school personnel and anyone who works in daycare will be eligible for vaccinations starting Feb. 24. All other “essential” frontline workers, such as police officers, firefighters and grocery workers, will have to wait until March 10 to start vaccinating.
Subdividing Group 3 into the state vaccination priority list is necessary, according to the governor, to balance the limited supply of vaccines with the large number of front-line workers in the state.
North Carolina only receives 150,000 doses of vaccine each week from the federal government, and the state employs about 240,000 public school staff.
Previously, state officials said they had no plans to split Group 3 into smaller units and prioritize certain professions over others. But Cooper said it was just pragmatic to put teachers at the front of Group 3.
“There was concern about all these essential frontline workers in a large group, in Group 3, who suddenly bumped into the system that that would be problematic,” he said. “Starting with a smaller number of Group 3 frontline workers will help providers streamline vaccine distribution.”
Group 3 could be further subdivided in the coming weeks, depending on the flow of vaccine in the state, the governor said.
Secretary of State for Health and Human Services Dr. Mandy Cohen said caregivers can go to schools or workplaces to administer shots, or designate a specific day of the week when only educators or other frontline workers can receive vaccinations. With the state’s vaccination tracking system, employers will soon be able to upload employee information to pre-register them, she said.
Cohen warned, however, that the admission dates of February 24 and March 10 do not necessarily mean people will start taking photos. Some counties have long waiting lists of people in grade 1 or grade 2 who are still waiting to be admitted – Wake County’s list, for example, has more than 80,000 people – so teachers and other frontline workers will have to wait their turn, she said.
Wake County Public Health vaccinates about 2,000 people daily by appointment, only at the three mass vaccination sites: PNC Arena, the Wake County Public Health Center, and the Wake County Commons Building. Vaccines are also available from Duke Health, UNC REX, and WakeMed Health and Hospitals, along with some local pharmacies.
Learn how to get a vaccine near you.
WRAL Capitol Bureau Chief Laura Leslie and WRAL presenter / reporter Adam Owens contributed to this report.