Registration open for mass COVID-19 vaccination clinic
Andrea Martinez, a registered nurse at Samaritan, pulls a single dose of the coronavirus vaccine developed by Pfizer out of a vial containing multiple doses diluted with a saline solution.
Emry Dinman/Columbia Basin Herald
MOSES LAKE — Online registration is open for a mass vaccination clinic scheduled for Saturday at the Grant County Fairgrounds.
Qualifying residents who attend the clinic will receive the first of two shots. Appointments are required and are available from 8 a.m. to 4:45 p.m.
About 1,000 shots will be available. A follow-up clinic tentatively has been scheduled for April 3. Gretchen Youngren, development and communications director for Samaritan Healthcare, said the date of the follow-up clinic will depend on supplies of the vaccine.
Youngren said appointments for Saturday’s clinic can be made online, by text or phone.
The Grant County Vaccine Task Force, the clinic sponsors, are using the state’s “PrepMod” system to book appointments. People can sign up at https://prepmod.doh.wa.gov//reg/6012284569. The system requires an email address, and people who don’t have an email address can use [email protected].
Misty Aguilar, public information officer for the Grant County Health District, said people also can text COVID-19 to 211211 for help making an appointment.
And, appointments can be made by phone, at 800-525-0127 or 888-856-5816, from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
The clinic is open only to people who meet qualifying criteria. Eligible groups include people 65 years of age and older, people 50 years of age and older who live in a multigenerational household, teachers and school staff who work with children from pre-kindergarten through high school, and child care workers.
Health care workers at high risk for coronavirus also are eligible, along with first responders, people who live and work in long-term care facilities, and all other workers in health settings who are at risk of contracting the coronavirus.
People who want to find out when they will be eligible for vaccination can go to the “Find Your Phase” website, sponsored by the Washington Department of Health. It can be found at ttps://form.findyourphasewa.org/210118771253954.
The vaccine task force is made up of health organizations throughout Grant County, as well as the Grant County Incident Management Team. Health District Director Theresa Adkinson said the switch from Samaritan Healthcare as the primary sponsor expands the staff and resources available for each event.