The coronavirus vaccine is now available in Louisiana for people aged 70 and over at specific pharmacies across the state, health officials said on Monday.
See the location map.
The vaccine is available in 107 pharmacies in 51 of the 64 parishes in the state. Authorities expect each pharmacy to receive about 100 doses this week. Consultations are necessary and ambulant patients will not be vaccinated, LDH officials said.
After a slow start to the COVID-19 vaccination, Louisiana released a list of more than 100 pharmacies on Monday that will begin administering small…
Who is eligible for a vaccine?
Here is who is currently eligible to receive a coronavirus vaccine at pharmacies:
- People aged 70 or over.
- Dialysis patients and staff in dialysis facilities.
- Patients and home health care workers.
- Workers in outpatient health units, such as doctors’ offices, clinics, outpatient surgery centers, diagnostic testing facilities, dental offices and behavioral health clinics.
- Students, residents and school staff focused on health, such as physiotherapy, oral hygiene, medical assistants and more.
The priority group has about 640,000 eligible people, state officials estimate.
Vaccines are being administered in other parts of Louisiana to healthcare professionals in tier 1 and tier 2 hospitals, staff and residents of nursing homes and long-term care facilities and emergency medical and fire service personnel.
The first vaccines against coronavirus require two injections.
List of locations
Here is the list of pharmacies in the New Orleans metropolitan area that are receiving doses of the vaccine. You must schedule an appointment before going to the pharmacy.
Here is a PDF of all pharmacies in Louisiana with the vaccine.
Orleans Parish
Ochsner Pharmacy and Wellness Lake Terrace, 1532 Robert E Lee Blvd. (504) 226-2033
Broad Avenue Pharmacy, 1400 N. Broad St. (504) 309-4384
Carr Drugs # 1, 3500 Holiday Drive. (504) 367-5724
Crescent City Pharmacy, Avenida Simon Bolivar, 2240 (504) 267-4100
Michoud Pharmacy, 4646 Michoud Blvd. (504) 435-1422
St. Bernard Drugs LLC # 3, 10200 Chef Menteur Highway. (504) 242-1100
Jefferson Parish
Ochsner Pharmacy and Wellness, 200 W Esplanade Ave., Kenner. (504) 464-8250
Ochsner Pharmacy and Wellness West Bank, 2500 Belle Chasse Highway, Gretna. (504) 595-8180
Pharmacy A-1, 3501 Severn Ave., Metairie. (504) 875-2330
Comeaux Pharmacy, 2305 West Esplanade Ave., Kenner. (504) 305-1745
NOLA Discount Pharmacy of Metairie, 1107 Veterans Blvd. (504) 835-6060
Westbank Pharmacy, 3709 Westbank Expressway, Harvey. (504) 340-0777
St. Tammany Parish
Ochsner Pharmacy and Wellness, 1000 Ochsner Blvd., Covington. (985) 871-2549
Ochsner Pharmacy and Wellness Slidell Memorial, 1051 Gause Blvd. (985) 639-3726
Baham Pharmacy & Wellness, 3916 Highway 22, Mandeville. (985) 273-5099
Miley Meds Pharmacy, 64288 Highway 41, Pearl River. (985) 256-7222
Medicine Shoppe, 999 Robert Blvd, Slidell. (985) 643-7894
St Bernard
Walgreens, 100 W Judge Perez Drive, Chalmette. Online registration.
Sao Carlos
Pharmacy and Wellness Ochsner, 13100 River Road, Destrehan. (985) 240-4610
NOLA Discount Pharmacy of Destrehan, 3001 Ormond Boulevard. (985) 307-0800
St. John the Baptist
Medicine Shoppe, 70 Dominican Drive, LaPlace. (985) 652-1245
Which vaccine?
Authorities approved two coronavirus vaccines for use in the United States – one from Pfizer and the other from Moderna. Both require two injections given a few weeks apart for long-term protection.
The Modern vaccine will be available in pharmacies in Louisiana, according to the LDH website.
People vaccinated with the Pfizer vaccine must receive the second dose 21 days after the first. Whoever takes the Modern vaccine needs to take the second dose 28 days after the first.
Now that Louisiana is getting COVID-19 vaccines every week, the state Department of Health is shifting its focus to a crucial part of achieving …
How much will it cost?
Vaccine doses purchased with US taxpayer dollars will be free for the person receiving the vaccine, health officials said. However, providers may charge an administrative fee or for an office visit.
It was unclear whether there would be a tax in pharmacies.
Will I still have to wear a mask after being vaccinated?
Yes, masks and social distance will still be recommended for some time after people are vaccinated.
Current vaccines require two injections and the effect of vaccination is generally not immediate.
People are expected to achieve some level of protection a few weeks after their first injection. But full protection may not happen until a few weeks after the second injection.
It is also not known whether the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines protect people entirely from infections or just symptoms. This means that vaccinated people can still be infected and transmit the virus, although it is likely to be at a much lower rate, said Deborah Fuller, a vaccine expert at the University of Washington.
How does the coronavirus vaccine work?
Unlike many vaccines, the coronavirus vaccine does not contain a dead or weakened virus that triggers an immune response. Instead, officials said, the COVID-19 vaccine contains a genetic instruction manual that tells your immune system how to respond and protect you from exposure to the real virus.
The technology used in vaccines is called mRNA, or messenger RNA, health officials said. This is the first time that mRNA has been used in a vaccine, but the effect is the same as other vaccines, they said.
Who’s next on the priority list?
The state is currently in priority group 1-B, level one. The next group is level two, which has an estimated 318,750 people.
There was no immediate schedule for vaccines for this group yet.
The group includes:
- School staff and K-12 daycare
- Public transport workers
- Grocery workers and other essential frontline workers
- Postal workers
- Support staff related to health (laboratories, morgue, pharmacy)
- Essential government response personnel
- Judicial staff
- Department of Homeland Security personnel, National Guard (non-COVID deployed), federal intelligence and security personnel, military personnel
- The first respondents are not covered in Phase 1A
- Correction officers and jailers
- Medical transport services
- Shelter for homeless and other employees of the congregated group’s house
- Agricultural and food processing workers
Read more about priority groups.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.