Santa Clara County residents age 65 and older can now be vaccinated, county officials announced on Tuesday.
Residents in this age group can now schedule appointments through the county’s website for vacancies from Wednesday onwards.
The expanded eligibility follows the current state guidance for vaccine allocation.
“Older residents and those living in qualified nursing facilities remain the population most at risk for serious illness and death from COVID-19,” said Dr. Monika Roy, county public health assistant.
On Monday, more than 160,300 individuals were vaccinated in Santa Clara County by the county, private health care providers and other vaccine distributors.
The county’s health care system is the largest supplier of the COVID-19 vaccine, county officials said. So far, it has administered nearly 60,000 first doses and has a weekly capacity to provide 30,000 vaccine consultations per week.
Residents can book appointments at mass vaccination sites located at Santa Clara County Fairgrounds, Berger Drive in San Jose and Mountain View Community Center.
The county is also vaccinating eligible individuals at various Valley Health Center locations, including up to 600 people a day in Gilroy, according to the county’s Department of Public Health.
“As the vaccine becomes available to more of our residents, the county continues its deep commitment to equity and ensuring access to our communities most at risk of contracting COVID-19,” said Dr. Jennifer Tong, medical director associate of the county of Sistema Único de Saúde Santa Clara.
The county is also partnering with community clinics and has launched a pilot mobile vaccination clinic to ensure access to the vaccine for residents and employees of long-term care institutions.
“We are coordinating efforts with local firefighters and emergency medical service providers and sending vaccinators to the field to ensure that those most at risk can be vaccinated as soon as possible,” said Roy.
County officials say the ability to expand the vaccine’s eligibility depends on vaccine supply.
This week, the county received 20,125 additional first doses of the vaccine, which is “far fewer doses than the county’s health systems are capable of delivering,” according to the county’s public health department.
Residents can find out more about vaccine allocation and administration by healthcare professionals on the county’s COVID-19 vaccine panel.
To see the latest updates on vaccine eligibility or schedule a vaccination appointment, people can visit sccfreevax.org.