3 federal vaccines in Jacksonville to stop administering first doses next week

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. As of next Wednesday, only second doses of the COVID-19 vaccine are available at federal support sites in Jacksonville, including the Gateway Shopping Mall and its two satellite sites in Oceanway and Jacksonville Beach.

Tuesday, March 24, will be the last day for people who qualify to receive a first dose of the federal sites that support Jacksonville, Tampa, Orlando and Miami. It will only take two days for newly qualified people between the ages of 50-60 to be vaccinated at the largest vaccination clinic in Northeast Florida.

The only exception: the state plans to offer the one-dose Johnson and Johnson vaccine during the last two weeks of surgery.

Those looking for first doses will still be able to make appointments at retail pharmacies, such as Walmart and Publix, as well as at state vaccination clinics such as Regency Square Mall and Edward Waters College.

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According to the Florida Emergency Management Division, the federally supported sites would be open for eight weeks and closed April 28. Government officials say it is possible that the operation could be expanded to meet the growing demand.

The state understands how critical these vaccination sites are in increasing access to vaccines for Floridians. The state is working closely with the federal government to evaluate whether these sites can remain open after April 28, ‘reads a statement from the Florida Department of Emergency Management. “This operation can be expanded based on a variety of factors, including, but not limited to, increased vaccine allocation and resource availability.”

According to the Florida Division of Emergency Management, the Jacksonville FEMA satellite vaccine sites at Oceanway Community Center and the Carver Center in Jacksonville Beach will move back to the Normandy Community Center and the Hammond Senior Center for the next three weeks. Government officials say they want people to return to the site where they received their first dose for their second shot.

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The end of the first doses on the FEMA sites in Jacksonville comes when government Ron Desantis publicly discusses the age requirements for the COVID-19 vaccine. At a news conference Friday, Governor Desantis said he would likely lower the age limit to 16 and older before May 1.

The federal locations in Jacksonville added more than 4,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses per day to inventory in Northeast Florida. The Gateway Shopping Mall alone can vaccinate 3,000 people every day.

The federal websites in Jacksonville have not experienced a single day where the daily allotment of doses has been used.

Since March 3, the five state and federal sites in Jacksonville have averaged only about 60 percent of the doses available each day.

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Incident commander Ron Beesley said FEMA sent out hundreds of staff members to go to communities to not only inform them about the vaccination clinics, but also to provide transportation to the sites.

‘We hope the outreach will move the needle in the near future. We see a shift in our demographics, a positive movement from that side. But we still see that there is a lot of misinformation, ‘Beesley said. “The one is” they’re going to put a chip in me and track me down. ‘It’s 100% false. Another is’ they are going to inject me with coronavirus. ‘It’s also 100% untrue. ”

Another obstacle was the qualifying criteria to get a vaccine in Florida, specifically age restrictions. Until Monday, only firefighters and sworn law enforcement officers over 50, school staff, medically vulnerable, health workers and those 60 years and older can get a COVID-19 shot.

The Gateway vaccine in Jacksonville compiled a waiting list a few weeks ago for those who do not meet the requirements. People on the list will be called if there is an unused dose, but there is no one in line who meets the criteria. The incident commander said Monday there had not been an unused dose for six days.

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‘This list is currently over 300 and many of them do not meet the criteria. So there is an interest outside the current criteria, ”Beesley said.