The site is expected to fit up to 600 people per day, Tuesdays through Fridays
CLARK COUNTY — More than 18,000 people who qualify to receive COVID-19 vaccinations under the state’s Phase 1B, Tier 1 have signed up on the Clark County Public Health website to be notified when they can receive their first dose.
On Sunday, the department warned that vaccine shipments to healthcare providers, such as PeaceHealth Southwest, Legacy Salmon Creek, The Vancouver Clinic, and Sea Mar Community Health Centers continue to be limited, meaning it could be weeks before people can be scheduled.
However, the Washington Department of Health is expected to open a mass vaccination site at the Clark County Fairgrounds starting Tuesday, Jan. 26, with vaccines administered by appointment only.
Clark County Public Health is urging people who’ve registered through the county’s website to also seek an appointment at the fairgrounds site as well, using the Department of Health website.
(NOTE: As of this publication, the scheduling page for the Fairgrounds vaccination site shows no available slots, but that is likely to change by Monday.)
“Those who have submitted requests with Public Health will remain on our list, and we’ll continue to work with local health care facilities to get those individuals connected with vaccine as quickly as possible,” said Dr. Alan Melnick, Clark County health officer and Public Health director. “However, some people may be able to be vaccinated sooner at the fairgrounds site.”
The fairgrounds vaccination site is currently scheduled to be open from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m., Tuesday through Friday, with the initial capacity to vaccinate up to 600 people per day.
“As vaccination allocations increase in the coming weeks, on-site vaccinations will also increase,” the state’s website reads. “Currently, DOH is working with our private sectors to build the infrastructure needed to reach the state’s goal of 45,000 vaccinations a day.”
The state is urging people not to go to a vaccination site without an appointment, as walk-ins are not being accepted currently.
Under Phase 1A and 1B1, the following people qualify for a vaccination:
* Healthcare personnel
* Long-term care facility residents
* Emergency medical personnel
* Individuals over the age of 65
* Individuals over the age of 50 AND live in a multi-generational households
If you are in one of those categories, you can register to be scheduled for a vaccination using the Albertsons and Safeway Health Check In website here.
Clark County Public Health, along with Cowlitz and Skamania County, with assistance from the Pacific Northwest Incident Management Team 3 through FEMA, are continuing efforts to ramp up vaccinations and open other clinics, along with mobile vaccine units.
Details on those plans are currently anticipated to be announced in the first half of this week.
According to the DOH COVID-19 data dashboard, as of Saturday just over 15,000 people in Clark County have been vaccinated, mostly frontline medical workers and people in long-term care facilities, which is being done through a separate program run directly by the Centers for Disease Control.
