Beginning Tuesday, April 6, Riverside County will offer coronavirus vaccines to residents age 16 and older, nine days before state planning, officials announced on Monday.
“Expanding eligibility will allow the last large group of adult residents in Riverside County to be vaccinated and will bring us a step closer to collective immunity,” said county public health director Kim Saruwatari in a press release. “Taking the vaccine to a younger population, where we have seen an increase in cases, is a big step forward.”
In the same statement, supervisor Karen Spiegel said, “More vaccine is available now, and the opening of eligibility will take us even further towards our goal of vaccinating the majority of our residents.”
Sixteen and 17-year-olds, who are eligible for the Pfizer vaccine, must be accompanied by a parent or guardian for their vaccination appointment, the press release says. Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are available for people over 18 years of age.
At the end of March, Governor Gavin Newsom announced that those over 16 years of age could be vaccinated across the state from April 15. Californians aged 50 and over became eligible on April 1, and Riverside County allows those in certain occupations – grocery workers and teachers, for example – to be vaccinated, as well as people aged 16 and over with health problems. underlying causes, such as cancer or severe obesity, that make them especially vulnerable to serious illness or death from COVID-19.
Riverside County currently operates four vaccine clinics, located at the Albert A. Chatigny S. Community Recreation Center in Beaumont; Tahquitz High School in Hemet, Heritage High School in Menifee and Moreno Valley Mall. The county also provides the vaccine at six community health centers administered by the University of Riverside Health System.
More than 1 million doses of vaccine have already been administered in the municipality, which gave its millionth injection last Wednesday. On Monday, 31.8% of county residents aged 16 and over were partially or fully vaccinated, with 17.4% fully vaccinated, according to the Riverside University Health System – Public Health.
To obtain a vaccine appointment, visit www.rivcoph.org/COVID-19-Vaccine. Those aged 65 or over or who need help making an appointment can call 211 or 951-329-4703. The current 211 waiting times are less than 5 minutes, according to the county.