How To Get The Coronavirus Vaccine In California

Los Angeles CA

24 February, 2021

7:18 PM

Description

CALIFORNIA — As California attempts to improve and reshape its embattled coronavirus vaccine rollout, residents of the Golden State have struggled to keep up. Many eligible for inoculation have been left to wonder: How do I get a vaccine? The answer to that question has changed a few times, and it largely depends on where you live and how many clinics or vaccination centers have enough doses on hand. In recent weeks, California's initially muddled vaccine rollout has been picking up speed. The state has now administered more than 11 million doses. "That's 3 million more doses of vaccine than any other state in America," Gov. Gavin Newsom said at Tuesday night's State of the State address. To further streamline the state's rollout, Blue Shield officially took the reins of the state's delivery system earlier this month. By the end of the month, eligibility criteria for the vaccine is expected to level off across all of the Golden State's counties — except perhaps in Santa Clara County. On Monday, Jeff Smith, a county executive, said the county would not sign a contract with Blue Shield to take over the area's rollout. It is unclear how state officials will handle instances like that. The insurer was tasked with managing the state's new vaccine network following mass confusion and frustration spurred by previous decisions to allow counties discretion for setting vaccine eligibility. Going forward, Blue Shield is expected to make recommendations on how many doses each county will get and who will get them based on benchmarks set by the state. Eventually, residents in each county will be able to make an appointment to get vaccinated only through the state's scheduling website, MyTurn, or on its phone line, 833-422-4255. Despite improvements, a major supply shortage continues to dampen these efforts. READ MORE: CA's Vaccine Rollout Is Revamped Again: What To Know Newsom has said that supply issues will start to improve in late March and early April. And as the state continues to grapple with this supply crisis, a new arrow in the state's vaccine quiver has reportedly arrived in the state — Johnson & Johnson's product. "I'm very confident with [Johnson & Johnson], at the end of March, April, we're going to start seeing things really ramp up," Newsom has said. "May, June, July: game changer. All of a sudden we're at a completely different level." The U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized the use of Johnson & Johnson's single-dose vaccine on Saturday. And on Wednesday, a review of the single-dose vaccine's safety was completed by the Western State Scientific Safety Review Workgroup. "We now have three remarkable vaccines that offer 100 percent protection from death and hospitalizations," Newsom said in a statement earlier this month. Public health officials said last week that the state would be receiving around 320,000 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. This week, that shipment "likely arrived" on Monday and Tuesday to various providers around the state, a spokesperson from the California Department of Public Health told Patch on the condition of anonymity. "All counties have been allocated vaccines from J&J alongside Moderna and Pfizer," the spokesperson said. "They continue to allocate them to providers within their geography." But Newsom said on Wednesday that the next few weeks would remain scarce in terms of access to vaccines, according to the Los Angeles Times. In the meantime, experts urge eligible Californians to do their best to try to get vaccinated, despite any challenges the state is facing. Another possible avenue to gaining vaccine eligibility presented itself this week as officials announced that volunteers at vaccination clinics could gain access to shots. The state currently looks to recruit volunteers to fill a handful of positions at clinics across California to help speed up vaccination efforts. My Turn Volunteer — managed by California Volunteers and Gov. Gavin Newsom's office — launched last week. Volunteers who work a four-hour shift could get an opportunity to move up the vaccine eligibility ladder with permission from a clinic administrator, Dave Smith of California Volunteers said Friday at a Community Vaccine Advisory Committee meeting. Sign up on My Turn Volunteer to see if there are any opportunities to volunteer in your area. Here's what you need to do to get vaccinated. Check your eligibility An estimated 15 million people are eligible to receive a coronavirus vaccine in California, according to data from the state's phased eligibility approach to inoculate residents. Anyone living in California can check their eligibility on the state's MyTurn website. Some counties have already begun vaccinating essential workers such as teachers, food service workers and first responders. But the state is still focused on vaccinating all health care workers and staff and residents of long-term care facilities. After these groups, the state will prioritize those 65 and older. The current list will vary by county to some degree. As of Wednesday, the following groups were eligible candidates to recieve a vaccine, accoding to the state's plan: Phase 1a (now vaccinating) - Estimated 3 million people Health care workers.Long-term care residents. Phase 1b (vaccinating as supplies allow) - Estimated 12 million people Individuals 65 and older.Sector populations: Agriculture and food.Education and child care.Emergency services. In mid-March, everyone 16 and older with a serious underlying health condition will also become eligible. Those diagnosed with the following health conditions will qualify, according to the state: Cancer, current with weakened immune system.Chronic kidney disease, stage 4 or above.Chronic pulmonary disease, oxygen dependent.Down syndrome.Solid organ transplant leading to a weakened immune system.Pregnancy.Sickle cell disease.Heart conditions such as heart failure, coronary artery disease or cardiomyopathies (but not hypertension).Severe obesity (a body mass index equal to or greater than 40 kg/m2).Type 2 diabetes mellitus with hemoglobin A1c level greater than 7.5 percent. Those with other disabilities who are not on that list will also become eligible if they are "likely to develop severe life-threatening illness or death from COVID-19," according to the state. Make an appointment If you're eligible, you can book an appointment on the state's scheduling website MyTurn. Californians may also check their local Rite Aid or CVS pharmacies for available appointments for now, but by the end of March, all appointments will have to be made through MyTurn, or on its phone line, 833-422-4255. See if there is a Rite Aid or a CVS near you to check your availability and book an appointment. If all else fails, experts suggest calling or emailing your county's public health department. Find your area's coronavirus website here. What happens after I get vaccinated? Even after receiving both doses of a Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, experts and public health officials still urge the public to wear a mask and practice social distancing. That's because, although the vaccine may prevent serious disease, those who are vaccinated may still carry virus particles that could infect others who are not vaccinated. "If the vaccine only prevents disease, and the person can still get infected, that means they're capable of spreading COVID-19 to other people, even though they won't get sick," Dr. Timothy Brewer told Patch in a previous interview. Brewer is a professor of infectious diseases at the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles. "In fact, an important thing for everyone to remember is that we don't actually know if vaccines prevent infection," he said. "We know they're very good at preventing disease. And there's a difference between the two." Can I gather with others who have been vaccinated? In terms of returning to our social circles, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top infectious disease expert in the United States offered a glimmer of hope last week. At a press conference, Fauci confirmed that small gatherings between those who are "doubly" vaccinated — those who receive both shots of Moderna and Pfizer — would be safe. "Small gatherings in the home, I think you can clearly feel the relative risk is so low you wouldn't have to wear the mask," Fauci said. "You could have a good social gathering within the home." Fauci said the Centers for Disease Control is working on putting out guidance on this matter. California's coronavirus data as of Wednesday, March 10 The state has 3,513,678 confirmed cases to date, with 6,542 cases reported Tuesday. Wednesday's case count includes 4,558 confirmed cases reported by Los Angeles County, the state said Wednesday. Of these, 880 were newly identified cases. The remaining 3678 cases reported on Tuesday were cases that were previously identified as probable between July 14, 2020 and March 7, and were reclassified as confirmed cases, the state said. Because of this, the 7-day positivity rate went up to 2.4 percent and the 14-day positivity rate bumped up slightly to 2.3 percent from 2.2 percent on Tuesday. The state has administered a total of 10,772,859 vaccines. There have been 48,712,676 tests conducted in California. This represents an increase of 243,570 during the prior 24-hour reporting period. The Centers for Disease Control reported Monday that 14,650,550 doses have been delivered to entities within California, and 15,107,575 vaccines, which include first and second doses, have been shipped. More than 206 cases of the B.1.1.7 variant first found in the United Kingdom have been found in California, as of Feb. 25 with two cases of the South African variant, B.1.351, identified in the Bay Area. Information about variants tracked in the Golden State can be found here. Read more about California's vaccine rollout from Patch: Back To School: CA Lawmakers Reach Deal For In-Class InstructionCA Vaccine Rollout: How To Book An Appointment At Rite Aid5 CA Variant, Vaccine Questions: What You Need To KnowVolunteers At CA Vaccine Clinics Could Get Early Access To Shots