Then they are in the same pool as all other eligible residents; here’s how seniors can pursue vaccination for that.
(Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune) Kenley Hansen receives a COVID-19 vaccination from Kirsten Weber, while residents of Utah County lined up for vaccinations at a former Shopko store in Spanish Fork, Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2021.
But from next month they will no longer be at the front of the queue.
“They will still be eligible,” said Utah Department of Health spokesman Tom Hudachko, “but [they] will be in the same pool as everyone else. “
That pool includes residents 65 and over and anyone over 18 with certain chronic or serious health conditions.
But local health departments will focus on finishing vaccines in the arms of people 70 and older for the remainder of February, said state epidemiologist Dr. Angela Dunn.
And Lieutenant Governor Deidre Henderson added that 29 Smith’s pharmacies and 18 Walmart locations will receive vaccine doses starting Feb. 11, giving seniors other avenues to vaccination.
Salt Lake County sets a deadline if you want a guarantee
Seniors who sign up on the Salt Lake County appointment list are confident that they will queue up if more vaccine becomes available, said health department spokesman Nicholas Rupp – but only if they register by Feb. 28.
“We schedule their appointments before scheduling appointments for anyone 65 and older,” Rupp said.
For seniors on the reporting list, “We’re going to schedule them through February and, if necessary, through March,” said Rupp, “before we start scheduling those over 65 and those under those with underlying health conditions.”
Registering on the list guarantees an appointment, but it does not guarantee when. Residents will be notified when one becomes available.
And when someone gets a first dose, their second dose is “automatically reserved for them,” Rupp said. “That second dose is not affected by someone who gets a first dose, be it another 70 plus or someone 65 plus.”
How to Get a Vaccination at Smith’s Food & Drug and Walmart Pharmacies
Seniors in Utah who already have vaccination appointments through their local or regional health department should keep them, Henderson noted.
But others can turn to certain Smith’s Food & Drug and Walmart pharmacies, which will begin dispensing vaccines next week.
Until the end of February, only people over 70 are eligible in the shops. (Pharmacies do not vaccinate health and school personnel currently eligible.)
(Those who do not have Internet access can call 866-211-5320.)
Registration for appointments starts on Tuesday or Wednesday; the goal is to start with ‘shots in arms’ on Thursday.
“To make sure we don’t promise doses that we don’t yet have control over, we wait for them,” before scheduling appointments, Montuoro said. And the first doses are scheduled for Monday. “People should check the website for availability from Tuesday.”
Each participating pharmacy gets about 100 doses per week, so there will never be a big crowd. “It’s not like a mass clinic,” said Montuoro.
People will be told to arrive on their scheduled time; they will have to confirm the information they have provided online; get their chance; and then sit socially distant while being monitored for 15 to 30 minutes.
Smith’s, who has already administered injections in Idaho, Nevada and Arizona, knows that “there is a lot of passion and interest in the vaccine,” Montuoro said.
They have had people “come to the stores in the hope that somehow they can get one,” Montuoro said. “But we don’t take walk-ins.”
Smith’s will announce which of its Utah locations will have doses available when it opens appointment scheduling, and will prioritize its locations in rural counties and “backward areas in our metropolitan areas,” Montuoro said.
Patients are not charged for the vaccines.
Walmart, which will also administer vaccines, has “not landed on a delivery or activation date,” said spokeswoman Rebecca Thomason. “We expect to publish a full list of stores involved in the rollout of the federal vaccines and how state-designated priority groups can make an appointment in the coming weeks.”
What will change on March 1?
On March 1, as the number of Utahns eligible for vaccination increases, no one of any age or health condition will have precedence over anyone else.
It’s the same pattern the state followed in December, Hudachko noted. For three weeks, health workers in the hospital had priority. But when all health workers were eligible, hospital workers became part of the larger pool.
So as of March 1, “We will not be able to prioritize by age within the eligible group. It’s kind of a first come, first served for the whole age group, ”said Montuoro.