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SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. – Seminole County was one of eight counties in the state selected for a pilot program where workers distribute the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine at Oviedo Mall this week.
Seminole County Emergency Manager Alan Harris said he had been talking about this program for about six months and said he was very outspoken against the state leaders and said he would like to be part of the pilot program.
Other Florida counties that are part of the program will also begin firing shots very soon, Harris said, including neighboring Orange County.
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Shooting would start at 1pm at the Oviedo Mall food court opposite the Loft Outlet.
“We are the first county in the state to do this, and this vaccination site is open to the public,” said Lee Constantine, president of Seminole County. “It is a very exciting day for all of us, and above all, and hopefully for our residents. It’s also a great day for the state of Florida, because from now on we’re going to save lives one shot at a time. “
He said he had told Florida officials that the county had been preparing months ago and even submitted plans to show what had been put in place to make this happen.
Harris said the pilot program was to see how it would work for counties to set up distribution points.
He told News 6 that Seminole County had been selected and that it received 8,100 doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine. He said the county is ready to receive Pfzier vaccines and has the freezer capacity.
“We’ll do up to 700 a day,” Harris said.
When the online portal opened for people 65 and older to sign up to get the vaccine, Harris said all appointments were booked within hours.
“I expected there would be some concern about the vaccine because of all the conspiracy theories, but it’s clear people have read it, they’ve gone through the facts, they’ve thrown out the stupid conspiracy theories and they’re interested in getting the vaccines and their save your own life, ”Harris said.
Harris said it’s essential for people to make an appointment. There are no walk-in appointments.
“Because we have to thaw the doses,” he said. “So we have to have the exact number of doses every day.”
Once a common vaccine has been opened, it should be used within 6 hours, Seminole County health official Donna Walsh said. If someone doesn’t show up, they call people on a waiting list, but Walsh hopes people keep their appointments.
“We have 30 days to use that refrigerated product once it has thawed, and we are very careful that we don’t go into a bottle until we have 10 people. So we know we can use that bottle in six hours, ”said Walsh.
Jeff Wray said he is one of those who should get the COVID-19 vaccine at the Oviedo Mall.
“I hope that as I go through this, others will see that there is no problem taking the vaccine and protecting them, not only themselves, but also their families and others they come into contact with,” said Wray.
People can book an appointment by going to prepareseminole.org or calling the citizen hotline at 407-665-0000. People who qualify for the vaccine can also go directly to Eventbrite to make an appointment.
All appointments for this week were booked from Monday morning and the county was due to open the website at 11am for more bookings, but the website experienced a glitch on Monday morning.
“Currently, the Seminole County website is down and phone lines are busy as people over 65 try to register for a COVID-19 vaccine,” the county said in a tweet. “We appreciate your patience as we resolve these issues.”
Harris said the county is working to get more servers online to meet demand.
According to a press release, residents over 65 who have an appointment are vaccinated in the food court opposite the Loft outlet. People should enter the mall between Paul Mitchell School and Oyishi Steakhouse, near the north entrance to the food court.
As of December 28, only the following groups are eligible for vaccines: residents aged 65 and older, residents and staff of long-term care facilities, EMT and paramedics, Florida Department of Health clinical staff providing services, and health professionals.
Residents can also text COVID19INFO to 888-777 to receive notifications when the vaccine becomes available to more groups.
County officials said a doctor’s approval letter to receive the vaccine is no longer necessary.
From 8:15 PM on Monday, all appointments are fulfilled up to and including 9 January.
Seminole County, as well as other Central Florida county leaders, are working with the Florida Division of Emergency Management to accelerate the distribution of vaccines to more of their residents.
Walsh estimated the vaccines would be available to a wider population in March or April, but if additional vaccines are approved by the Federal Drug Administration, that could speed up the timeline.
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