Dallas County Health and Human Services expects to open a COVID-19 vaccine mega-center in Fair Park next week with the capacity to vaccinate up to 2,000 people a day, as the state opens more large-scale vaccination centers.
Provincial officials say they plan to begin Monday, but that may depend on when they get the next consignment of vaccine from the Texas Department of State Health Services.
Vaccines are only given to those on the DCHHS waiting list and by appointment only – they are not given to the general public or fans. Dallas County is currently only vaccinating those in Phase 1A, but expects those in Phase 1B to start vaccinating when the Mega Center opens next week.
The province also plans to provide vaccinations for up to 1,000 people a day at Ellis Davis Field House and Eastfield College, in addition to the 2,000 people a day at the Fair Park Mega Center.
The COVID-19 vaccine is currently only administered to those who are part of Phases 1A and 1B, as set forth by the Texas Department of State Health Services. Those in Phase 1A are leading health care workers or residents of long-term care facilities. Phase 1B includes those older than 65, or older than 16 with a chronic medical condition that puts them at risk for serious illness.
After being vaccinated, people are expected to get some protection within a few weeks after the first shot, but full protection can only take place a few weeks after the second shot. Even when fully vaccinated, it is still possible to become infected with the virus, as the vaccine does not provide 100% protection.
The Fair Center Vaccination Mega Center comes as the state health department begins sending vaccinations to providers who can vaccinate more than 100,000 people at large-scale vaccination centers.
“Providers who receive larger amounts of the vaccine will vaccinate healthcare workers, people aged 65 and over, and those with a medical condition that increases their risk of serious illness or death. They also agree to a registration phone number and website “and focus on areas and populations most affected by COVID-19 while vaccinating people from surrounding areas,” the DSHS said in a prepared statement.
The Texas DSHS said it would publish the full list of vaccine providers later this week once the vaccine award is complete.
Additional vaccines will continue to be distributed to smaller suppliers in other parts of the state – in total, Texas will distribute a total of about 200,000 doses of vaccine to both large and small suppliers next week.
“Vaccination remains limited due to the ability of the manufacturers to produce it, and so it will take time before Texas receives enough vaccine for the people in the populations who want to give preference,” the DSHS said. “The supply is expected to increase in the coming months, and additional vaccines are in clinical trials and may be approved by the Food and Drug Administration.”
The week of January 11 is the last week that the state is required to discuss doses to vaccinate residents and staff of long-term care facilities under the federal pharmacy-LTC partnership, which means more vaccines will be released next week for use in other institutions.
Katy Blakey, NBC 5, contributed to this report.