Vaccinations - page 2

The Newsom Administration on Thursday announced that California has set aside 40 percent of vaccine doses for the hardest-hit communities and established a vaccine equity metric – which seeks to increase vaccinations in those communities – as a prelude to adjusting the Blueprint for a Safer Economy, which governs the conditions under which California’s economy can safely operate during the COVID-19 pandemic.

California’s approach, according to information from the Governor’s Office, will continue to focus on masking and effective use of testing, contact tracing, quarantine and isolation. The state is also updating its recommendations about the most effective use of masks and when to consider double masking.

“With more vaccines online and administered, California is now in a position to take steps toward ending this pandemic by keeping our guard up and by vaccinating those Californians most at risk and most exposed,” said Governor Newsom in a news release posted by his office. “Vaccinating our most impacted communities, across our state, is the right thing to do and the fastest way to end this pandemic.”

Continue Reading on The Riverbanks

On Monday, Blue Shield took over California’s COVID-19 vaccination distribution in an attempt to streamline the process and create a single, statewide criterion, remove the responsibility from individual counties.

San Joaquin and Stanislaus were among the first counties impacted by the shift to Blue Shield, as the insurance company focused its efforts on communities where the virus disproportionately affected families.

Here are five things to know about the shift:

1.Blue Shield’s goal is to fully inoculate 25 million people by the summer. In a statement sent to KCRA 3, the insurance company said its plan is to increase the doses per week from one million to four million by the end of March.

The transition began Monday, March 1, and is expected to finish the change to the statewide criteria by end of the month.

Continue Reading on KCRA

California is failing to provide crucial information about COVID-19 vaccine supply levels to local officials, complicating efforts to schedule appointments and contributing to temporary closures of vaccination sites.

Officials running local vaccination programs in multiple counties say they are not being told how many doses they will receive over the next three weeks, which is key data they need to keep vaccine sites open and running smoothly.

President Biden promised last month that his administration would provide a “reliable three-week supply look-ahead” in an effort to improve the transparency and efficiency of the country’s rocky vaccine rollout.

Gov. Gavin Newsom said he learns every Tuesday morning how many doses the Golden State will receive over the next three weeks. But state officials have yet to share those numbers with many local, city and county leaders, making it difficult to create appointments and plan for the administration of second doses.

Continue Reading on LA Times

California’s new system of delivering, tracking and scheduling coronavirus vaccines is being rolled out in select counties, a first step in Gov. Gavin Newsom’s plan to smooth out what has been a confusing and disjointed rollout hampered by limited national supply.

Newsom announced last month that his administration had tapped insurer Blue Shield to design and manage a centralized system to get doses out quickly and equitably. He said the state also needs robust data to ensure vaccines are distributed equitably and reach low-income communities, largely Latino and Black, disproportionately affected by the pandemic.

An initial list provided by the state showed 10 counties in the inland sections of central and Southern California chosen to be the first to make the transition to the Blue Shield system this week.

Counties in the initial group include Riverside, Kings, Imperial, Madera, Merced, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Fresno and Kern counties. Starting March 3, another group that includes Los Angeles, which has 10 million of California’s nearly 40 million residents, will be added.

Continue Reading on KTLA

STANISLAUS COUNTY, Calif — Stanislaus and San Joaquin counties say they’re ready to vaccinate thousands of people every day, but like many others in California, they just need the vaccine. However, unlike some of the other counties, some believe they are on the short end of the vaccine allocation.

“I can tell you that it’s not a claim. It’s real,” said Vito Chiesa, Stanislaus County Supervisor. “When you look at the statistics on vaccinations per 100,000, you have areas of the state that have been more successful. They receive more vaccines than we have.”

In an earlier Board of Supervisors meeting, Chiesa vented some frustration over the vaccinations per 100,000 in the county as reported by the Los Angeles Times. The LA Times vaccination tracker had places like Stanislaus and San Joaquin County on the lower half of their ranks. Chiesa said the ranking is not a lack of effort on the county’s part because they’re putting vaccines in arms as fast as they can.

Continue Reading on ABC 10

Stanislaus County Public Health will continue vaccinating individuals over the age of 65 and expand operations to include those over age 50 in the food and agriculture, education, and emergency services sectors starting Monday, Feb. 22. As Stanislaus County continues to expand its capacity to administer the vaccine, the vaccine supply allocations from the State remain limited.

To provide accessibility to residents in Stanislaus County, four high volume mass vaccination clinics are operating in the cities of Modesto, Turlock, Patterson, and Oakdale. The County is also working on a Mobile Vaccination Unit to make accessibility to the COVID‐19 vaccine as convenient and equitable as possible, particularly in neighborhoods that were impacted most by the pandemic.

Public Health officials said that while the County is working on vaccinating as many residents as possible, it is still critical that all residents continue to follow the recommendations to wear a mask, avoid gatherings, wash hands often, stay six feet from others whenever in public places, and get tested if exposed or experiencing symptoms.

Continue Reading on The Riverbank News

STANISLAUS COUNTY, Calif. — Stanislaus County will begin vaccinating eligible residents ages 50 years and older, starting Feb. 22, according to county health officials.

Those eligible include people 50 and older who work in food and agriculture, education, and emergency services.

Stanislaus County will continue to vaccinate those 65 and older, health department officials said. They also stress the number of vaccinations allocated from the state remains “limited.”

Stanislaus County is reminding residents that vaccination clinics are located in the following communities: Modesto, Turlock, Patterson, and Oakdale. A detailed map for each location can be found here.

Continue Reading on KCRA

WALNUT CREEK, Calif. (KGO) — An East Bay doctor was hailed as a hero after creating an opportunity to vaccinate seniors. But, a week later her motive is being called into question.

A local medical practice is no longer receiving vaccines after complaints were filed alleging an unfair distribution process.

Last week Dr. Parish hosted a drive through vaccination clinic for seniors at Stanley Middle School in Lafayette.

At least three physicians filed formal complaints to the Contra Costa County Public Health Ethics Board and another complaint was filed to the Medical Board of California.

“I’m pretty sure somewhere in there I promised somebody my firstborn child,” said Parish commenting on how hard she worked to acquire the vaccines.

Parish, CEO of a private concierge medical practice, Comprehensive Wellness says she spent 60 hours trying to convince county health officials to give her 500 vaccine doses to host a drive-thru clinic to vaccinate seniors.

Continue Reading on ABC 7

MODESTO, Calif. — People in Stanislaus County will have another chance to get their COVID-19 vaccinations this week.

The county is reopening two clinics for people in Phase 1A and older adults, ages 65 and up. Vaccine recipients must also be Stanislaus County residents.

An outdoor clinic space set up at Modesto Centre Plaza, which replaces the vaccine clinic that had been operating at the county public health building on Scenic Drive, will accommodate as many people as possible this week.

Another clinic will be held on the Stanislaus State University campus in Turlock.

The county explained why pulling off clinics like this is a complex process.

Continue Reading on KCRA