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Stephanie Innes
| Arizona Republic
Maricopa County will open the limited registration of the COVID-19 vaccine to members of the second priority group starting on Monday.
Individuals prioritized in Phase 1B will be able to start applying online on Monday for appointments. Places will be limited at the beginning because Phase 1A for healthcare professionals continues.
“We know that everyone is ready to move on to the next stage, and so are we,” said Dr. Rebecca Sunenshine, medical director of disease control at the Maricopa County Department of Public Health. “We are trying to complete all of these details as quickly as possible to ensure a smooth experience for everyone who can get the vaccine.”
Information on where vaccinations will take place and how to apply will be posted at maricopa.gov/5651/Phase-1B starting on Monday. There is no record available for 1B individuals before that. The county’s public health department can be reached at 602-506-6767.
Those who can apply first are employees of elementary and high schools and caregivers of children; police, protection service employees and security agents employed by the government; and adults aged 75 and over.
Educators and law enforcement officials should check with their employers before applying to the county, as they may have other vaccine distribution plans.
Other Phase 1B groups, including adults living in congregated settings and other essential workers, will be prioritized after the initial groups.
Appointments will first be available at county Dispensing Point (POD) locations, which were used for Phase 1A vaccinations for health professionals and rescuers at risk. Phase 1B individuals will be able to apply for open positions at POD locations that have not yet been reserved for second doses for Phase 1A individuals. Phase 1A people will still be able to apply for their first attempts alongside prioritized 1B individuals.
Sunenshine said that instead of ending Phase 1A before moving to 1B, the county is making a “slow transition” to ensure that all available commitments are used. She said that most of Monday’s appointments are already filled by health professionals, but 1B individuals will be able to fill extra vacancies.
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“What we are trying to do is to open up to priority groups in 1B as soon as possible because we know that people are eager to get vaccinated, knowing that we are still vaccinating healthcare professionals, but we don’t want to waste an opportunity,” she said.
As the county receives more doses and increases its programs, vaccines are likely to be allocated in locations outside of POD locations for these prioritized groups. This could include vaccinations at pharmacies and health centers qualified by the federal government for people aged 75 and over and vaccination clinics in the workplace for essential workers. There will also be specialized clinics or mini-PODs for school staff and childcare workers.
“We have said all along that PODs are only part of the vaccine distribution,” said Sunenshine. “The more doses of vaccine we receive, the more places we can allocate the vaccine and make it available to the public.”
Only those in Phase 1A and prioritized 1B with scheduled appointments will be able to receive the vaccine. Walk-ins are not allowed.
Individuals will be required to show their confirmation of appointment along with confirmation that they are in Phase 1B, such as an ID showing their age or a work badge or paycheck proving the workplace.
The county will update maricopa.gov/covid19vaccine as more groups can be vaccinated and more locations are opened, with the ultimate goal of vaccinating as many county residents as they wish.
After Phase 1B comes 1C, which includes adults aged 65 and over and adults with high-risk medical conditions.
Phase 2 (spring and summer) are the remaining individuals from Phase 1, additional high-risk or critical populations and the general population.
Phase 3 (summer and beyond) are the remaining individuals from Phase 1 and 2 and the general population.
Pima County will begin the next phase soon
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Pima County plans to start closing Phase 1A so it can move to 1B at the end of next week. County health officials say 1B is a large group that will require “significant effort and logistics”.
The county hopes to facilitate “multiple points of entry” for the large group 1B to receive a vaccine, said Dr. Francisco Garcia, the county’s medical director. It could be a workplace clinic, a POD in a hospital or individual doctors’ offices, he said. The strategy is to have the greatest degree of flexibility to get the most people vaccinated, he said.
Other vaccine sites in Pima County are expected to start growing next week, one by one, gradually, Garcia said.
Phase 1B is likely to continue in Pima County until the end of March, Garcia said. The county expects everyone who wants the vaccine to have received at least one of their doses in early summer.
“What matters is that we have a significant portion of our community vaccinated,” said Dr. Theresa Cullen, county health director. “It is up to us, as your public health department, along with the other county health facilities, to ensure that we remove them as quickly and safely as possible.”
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For now, Pima County will use the state’s vaccine registration system for the general public, but it may also develop its own registration tools in the future, said Cullen. The county is also working to make registration available to people over the phone, rather than online, she said.
Other counties also starting 1B
Pinal County was the first to switch to Phase 1B individuals, with registration available online.
Gila County began this week to provide vaccines for people in categories 1B. People can call 928-402-8888 or send an email to [email protected] to make an appointment.
Mohave County is also beginning the transition, with the vaccine immediately available to workers in the protection service. Vaccine providers are likely to start inoculating adults 75 and older in the next week. Priority Phase 1B individuals can contact suppliers to schedule appointments.
For information about other counties, visit the county’s public health department website.
For statewide information, see the state’s vaccines web page at azhealth.gov/covid19vaccine.
Talk to the reporter at [email protected] or at 602-444-4282. Follow her on twitter @alisteinbach.
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