TOLEDO, Ohio — The Toledo-Lucas County Health Department held a virtual briefing Thursday to give an update on the distribution plan for the third week of Phase 1B in Lucas County.
Health Commissioner Eric Zgodzinski opened Thursday's briefing with some figures about how many people have been vaccinated, noting 27,905 vaccines have been administered, which is about 6.51% of the population vaccinated.
The vaccine remains in short supply, Zgodzinski said. The county does not get more doses as more people get added to the eligibility list for the vaccine. Essentially, this means the vaccine becomes even more scarce when more groups get added, until production levels increase.
VACCINES AND SCHOOLS
New information is to be given to the county Friday from the state regarding schools and vaccines, Zgodzinski said. According to the state's planning map, Lucas County's schools are not highlighted as getting vaccines starting the week of Feb. 1.
"If I was a planner in the state, I'd be looking at what are the small counties I can take care of now, and then the larger ones," he said. "We're working with our schools to make sure they're on the list, that they'll get the vaccine and get students and staff back safely."
When asked why Notre Dame Academy was able to receive vaccines, Zgodzinski said he had "no idea" how they got the vaccine. He said he doesn't know if it goes beyond the state's guidelines.
"We got people vaccinated (though). Every vaccine in the arm of a Lucas County resident is a win. But we need to figure out why. I posed the question to the state yesterday," Zgodzinski said.
Can other schools go out and get vaccines on their own?
"I hope not," Zgodzinski said. "Whether we like what the governor and ODH have put forth, there is a plan in place. ... The priority is the elderly and who are we taking vaccine away from" if schools do that, he asked.
Schools are surveyed as to how many vaccines they need, they pick a partner and the plan is put into place, Zgodzinski said. He said Friday the county will know how many doses they'll be getting and then will plan to get as many doses distributed as quickly as possible.
VACCINE STANDBY LIST
Because of the scarcity of vaccines, the county pledges to not waste a single dose, and therefore has a standby list of people they can call if someone does not show up to take their vaccine at their scheduled appointment.
Zgodzinski said the standby list would be populated by those 65 and older, K-12 school staff members and first responders. Anyone who gets a first vaccine on the standby list is automatically scheduled for their second dose.
There is not an additional signup process for this, as long as you've signed up for the pre-registration process. That list will be used to help populate the standby list.
"We have used the list. We've used police officers, tier volunteers ... it varies. We know we need to open this up a little more to make sure we never have an issue with a wasted dose," Zgodzinski said. He estimated he's over 100 people who have been vaccinated via the standby list.
WHO IS NEXT FOR THE VACCINE
Right now (Jan. 28) people who are 70 or older and who either live or worked in Lucas County can start to schedule for vaccines.
Lucas County Phase 1B Vaccine Distribution
Here is the schedule already released by the health department:
- Week of February 1st- 70 & older are eligible for vaccine (schedule opens on Jan 28)
- Week of February 8th- 65 & older are eligible for vaccine (schedule opens on Feb 4)
THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT VACCINE SCHEDULING
- Individuals should schedule only their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccination.
- bring a form of identification (such as driver’s license, Medicare card, birth certificate, or other proof of age) and your insurance card. Some providers may bill medical insurance for individuals that have medical insurance, however individuals do not need to have insurance to receive the vaccine. There is no cost to the individual regardless of insurance coverage.
- Appointments may be canceled or rescheduled up to 48 hours in advance of the appointment time.
- Only individuals that live or worked in Lucas County and are 70 years of age or older are eligible to receive the vaccine at this time. Appointments for individuals that do not meet current eligibility criteria will be canceled.
HELP WITH VACCINE SCHEDULING
If you need assistance scheduling an appointment online, please contact United Way 2-1-1 (dial 211 from any phone) or the Area Office on Aging at 419-382-0624.