provided to The Santiva Chronicle
FORT MYERS, Fla. – The Florida Department of Health-Lee and Lee County government announced today, Jan. 19, that there is enough vaccine supply to schedule about 5,800 appointments for Thursday, Jan. 21, and Friday, Jan. 22, at the county’s site near the airport.
Beginning at 9 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 20, people can call toll-free 866-200-3468. This is the same phone line the state vendor, Tidal Basin, used last week.
The phone line will not accept appointments before 9 a.m. Wednesday. The reservation slots are expected to be claimed quickly, likely within minutes.
Tidal Basin representatives say people who are on the phone will either be scheduled for appointments while on the line, or they will be prompted to leave their contact information to receive a call back. Some people will receive a message that all slots are full, once that occurs.
Only people with appointments will be vaccinated this week at the site, which is off Daniels Parkway near Southwest Florida International Airport. Appointments are available for seniors 65 and older and frontline healthcare workers only at this time.
FDOH-Lee administered nearly 9,000 doses during last week alone at the site. Complete vaccination statistics are available at https://floridahealthcovid19.gov.
More than 19,000 people have been vaccinated at FDOH-Lee’s county sites since Dec. 28, 2020.
The Lee Board of County Commissioners received an update about the vaccination efforts at its regularly scheduled meeting this morning, Tuesday, Jan. 19. The meeting was aired on LeeTV, http://www.leegov.com and Facebook Live ( Lee County Government). The meeting video will be posted shortly on the county’s YouTube and at www.leegov.com with the agenda for today’s meeting.
Additional Information:
Second dose:
For information about those being scheduled for second doses, please refer to the news release from Thursday, Jan. 14. Please answer unknown numbers and keep your phones close by. You can find the complete information at www.leegov.com/vaccine in the FAQs under, “Is there a plan for how second doses will be distributed or scheduled?” Calls for second-dose appointments are continuing, as the vendor is attempting contact more than three times.
About the vaccination site:
As with the past two weeks, the vaccinations are available for people age 65 and older and frontline healthcare workers at the site east of Interstate 75 off Daniels Parkway. It’s the site of the old airport terminal parking lot. Message boards are in place to direct traffic.
When those registered arrive on site, officials will request ID showing proof of age before allowing them to queue up. People are asked to arrive no more than 45 minutes before their assigned vaccination time. Even though this is an appointment system, processing times may vary. Be prepared for some wait time.
Those with reservations can expedite the process by arriving prepared: visit www.leegov.com/vaccine to read the Moderna vaccination information and to print and complete the consent form.
Social distancing and masks are encouraged; take into account weather conditions. Portable toilets, handwashing stations, drinking water and some chairs will be available. For safety and security, county government and Lee County Sheriff’s Office staff is on site.
The following will not be permitted: Recreational Vehicles, campers or trailers. Only service animals will be permitted in the vaccination area. This is not a drive-thru site. The site is ADA compliant.
Further assistance:
The state vendor also now has a Help Line available at 888-499-0851. The Help Line is not able to schedule appointments; however, agents can answer questions about the reservation system and other general vaccination questions.
The United Way 2-1-1 hotline remains available for general questions about the vaccination rollout. The hotline is not able to help make reservations or handle pre-registration. Residents are asked to refrain from calling United Way with specific questions for the reservation vendor.
Complete information can be found at www.leegov.com/vaccine. People can visit Lee County Government Facebook and other social media channels (www.leegov.com/socialmedia) or monitor Florida DOH’s Twitter @flhealthlee.
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