SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah Department of Health announced Monday that it is turning to three major health care providers to help expand the launch of COVID-19 in the state starting this week, before a jump in allocated vaccines.
Intermountain Healthcare, Nomi Health and the University of Utah Health will help vaccinate Utahns under an agreement with the state.
“These partners will increase our coverage across the state. They will be able to offer large-scale vaccination clinics in some areas where we are currently unable to do so,” said Tom Hudachko, a spokesman for the Utah Department of Health. “They have established relationships with many residents of the state who have underlying medical conditions, so we will rely on them to help with those populations.”
Officials for all three health care providers said Monday they also plan to expand their vaccination efforts at locations in Utah starting this week to address the growing number of vaccines targeting the state of Beehive.
Intermountain Healthcare
Intermountain has announced seven locations where Utahns who qualify to receive the vaccine can schedule a vaccination meeting. Are:
- Logan Regional Hospital
- McKay-Dee Hospital in Ogden
- Park City Hospital
- Riverton Hospital
- St. Regional Medical Center George
- Murray Orthopedic Hospital (TOSH)
- Utah Valley Hospital
All seven locations will offer the Johnson & Johnson vaccine this week, said Dr. Kristin Dascomb, medical director of infection prevention for employees’ health for Intermountain Healthcare. The Utah Valley Hospital will also offer the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.
Anyone eligible for the vaccine can make an appointment by accessing the Intermountain website. Anyone with questions is encouraged to call 887-777-7061.
Nomi Health
Nomi Health has reached an agreement with the Larry H. Miller Group to own vaccination clinics at Megaplex Theaters in parts of Utah.
Their operating clinics include Megaplex locations in:
- Lehi, Utah County: 2935 N. Thanksgiving
- Vineyard, Utah County: 600 N. Mill Road
- West Valley City, Salt Lake County: 3601 S. 2400 West
- South Jordan, Salt Lake County: 3761 W. Parkway Plaza Drive
Dr. June Steely, medical director for Nomi Health, said the organization plans to add a location in Centerville starting Thursday and more locations closer to Logan next week.
It also has the ability to own “pop-up clinics” with the ability to distribute 250 vaccines a day through the method, she said. These locations will be established through agreements with the county health departments.
People who qualify for the COVID-19 vaccine can register to get one from Nomi Health through a state-created website. Anyone who needs help registering online can call 801-704-5911, Steely added.
U. of Utah Health
Currently, the University of Utah Health can vaccinate people in two locations:
- University of Utah Hospital, near the Salt Lake City University campus
- Redwood Health Center at 1525 W. 2100 South in Salt Lake City
The organization plans to expand the locations to Farmington, South Jordan and Sugar House health centers next week, according to Dr. Richard Orlandi, chief medical officer at Ambulatory Health at the University of Utah.
Anyone who qualifies to receive the vaccine based on medical records should have received an invitation to set up an appointment on their MyChart account. The health care provider also tried to extend invitations via email, text messages and phone calls, Orlandi said.
About 10% of the total state population received at least one dose of vaccine, according to the state health department. The partnerships announced Monday will not replace existing vaccine launch locations, such as those announced by local health departments or at various state pharmacies.
Monday’s announcement was made because the first doses of Johnson & Johnson vaccine were expected to arrive in Utah this week. The Utah Department of Health expected to receive 122,000 total doses of the first and second vaccine this week, adding doses from the new drug manufacturer.
Hudachko said the health department expects to see the allocation of Moderna primary vaccines next week and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines to “more than double,” as both drug manufacturers have expanded their supply.
This story will be updated.