January 8th, King County announced the allocation of $7 million to create new high-volume community vaccination sites and mobile teams to efficiently and equitably vaccinate as many residents as possible, as quickly as possible.
These vaccination efforts will complement vaccination efforts through the healthcare system, pharmacies and other providers. These vaccination sites will serve people at the highest risk of severe illness and death from COVID-19 first and eventually be open to all public members as more vaccine supplies become available.
“King County will step up and organize community vaccination centers and mobile teams to make sure we hit the ground running as more and more people become eligible to receive doses,” said Executive Constantine.
“To get this pandemic under control, 16,000 adults must be vaccinated every day for six months. That’s why we need everyone behind this effort. We are moving ahead now despite the lack of clarity on supply chain or federal funding allocation because every day delayed impacts the lives of our residents, the strength of our community, and the vitality of our businesses.”
Accessing vaccine
Most people in King County will access COVID-19 vaccines through their primary care provider or a local pharmacy. However, as Public health has learned from their COVID-19 testing sites, high-volume, open access, drive-up, and walk-up vaccination sites are essential to ensure equitable access to services. These community vaccine sites will be vital for individuals who are not connected to the health care system. These sites will be critical in south King County, which has a higher incidence of COVID-19 and other health disparities.
This funding will also help pay for mobile vaccine teams to serve those who cannot visit a healthcare provider or vaccination center. These teams will benefit from offering vaccines to vulnerable populations, such as people living homeless and homebound or otherwise isolated older adults.
“The new high-volume vaccination sites and mobile teams will ensure that we get shots to as many eligible people in the community as possible, particularly those who aren’t connected to the health care system,” said Patty Hayes, Director of Public Health – Seattle & King County. “These sites will be critical in expanding access to underserved communities and areas of the County, where we see a higher incidence of COVID-19.”
In addition, the County will continue to work with important partners like the Washington State Department of Health (DOH), the City of Seattle, emergency responders from across King County, Kaiser-Permanente, and other hospital systems to bring widespread vaccine access to our community.
More information
For more information on the COVID-19 vaccine and vaccination efforts in King County, visit their COVID-19 vaccination webpage.
