“I believe that if we are talking about working more closely with health partners, we actually need to treat them as partners and involve them in the conversation,” said Coursey.
Supervisor Susan Gorin argued that no change in planning or coordination will succeed if it is not accompanied by better county communication, noting the anxiety that still reigns among many local elders.
“I am totally in favor of the county taking charge and asking for a plan,” said Gorin. “But I want to see the results. What will this achieve? “
Hopkins did not offer many details about how his proposal would be in action. Much of what she described went back to creating a central hub for vaccination registrations in the county, a process she believes would prevent disasters like the OptumServe experience. That would mean submitting the big hospitals to county management.
In the current configuration, these healthcare providers receive the vaccine doses independently and have made their own appointment schedule. Hopkins’ plan, if implemented, would allow the county to guide who receives those nominations.
For Hopkins, it is a matter of equity. Many of the people who crashed the OptumServe system by flooding it with consultations are affiliated with one of the leading healthcare providers, she said. If the county is vaccinating its members, she wonders, why providers should not offer doses to county residents outside their systems.
“It’s crazy when you see the $ 8 million price tag on the agenda today and think about how much private companies are investing in it,” she said. “And we are offering the facilities for free. They can come and occupy the fair grounds or the Sonoma Veterans Building. What they totally should be doing. But where is our part of the deal? They make a lot of money. “
Without a written plan to respond, hospital groups hesitated to offer detailed assessments.
A Kaiser Permanente representative said the company is already offering vaccines to non-members. He said they can obtain an appointment, if available, and a medical record number by calling 866-454-8855.
A spokeswoman for St. Joseph Health provided a link explaining that her company is reaching out to qualified recipients about commitments.
“If the idea expressed by Supervisor Hopkins takes a specific form, we will evaluate it at that time,” said the company in the statement. “Regardless, our focus will continue to be to do what we can to vaccinate our caregivers and community members as effectively as possible, and to do so in partnership with the county and in accordance with public health guidelines.”
Sutter Health did not provide comments.
The vaccine plan released on Tuesday provides money for the county to expand the number of local vaccinators, conduct stakeholder outreach, direct information to the public, and serve other services by June 30. Current FEMA financing will cover 75% of the $ 8.1 million. The sources of the other 25% are undetermined.
Since the program began on December 15, more than 38,000 people have been vaccinated in Sonoma County, including more than 9,000 who have received the two necessary doses. This does not include residents and employees of long-term elderly care institutions served by CVS and Walgreens.
The county’s vaccination effort, which put about 1,785 doses into practice every day for the past week, gained momentum on Tuesday when it was announced that the CVS pharmacy in Sonoma is one of 100 selected in California to administer vaccines eligible recipients as of February 11. These doses – the number has not been released – will come directly from a federal partnership and will not be subtracted from the Sonoma County quota.
But even with the expansion of the vaccination campaign, there is still widespread confusion about who can get the vaccine.
The news spread on Tuesday that people under the age of 75 were able to book appointments at a drive-thru at Sonoma Valley High School to be administered by Sonoma Valley Hospital this weekend, although instructions stated otherwise. And some Oakmont Village residents have been told they should cancel their appointments for Thursday, Friday and Monday if they are under 75. At least 520 of the 800 vacancies filled for a clinic run by Safeway were filled by people at Range 65-74.
“By getting people under 75 to cancel their appointments, we can avoid the potential for all appointments to be canceled and require people over 75 to be rescheduled,” wrote retired community managers via email. residents.
You can contact Phil Barber at 707-521-5263 or [email protected]. On Twitter @Skinny_Post.