All adults can sign up for vaccine waitlist in Galveston County

Galveston County has expanded the sign-up for its COVID-19 vaccine waitlist to all adults, county officials announced Friday.

County residents received emergency alerts on their cellphones Friday morning inviting adults to sign up for the vaccine waitlist, regardless of age or health status. While county residents were the ones who got the text alerts, the county’s vaccine waitlist is actually open to all Texas residents.

A spot on the waitlist, however, does not mean that a vaccine appointment is imminent. The Galveston County Health District and University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, which has been leading the local vaccination effort, decided to open up the waitlist in anticipation of Gov. Greg Abbott’s plans to add new groups to the vaccination priority list.

The county is also expected to get additional doses of the Moderna vaccine this week, but Friday’s announcement is not related to that anticipated shipment, said Ashley Tompkins, a spokeswoman for the Galveston County Health District.

The state prioritized shots for two groups — those in Phase 1A and 1B — in the initial stages of the vaccine rollout. People who fall in the Phase 1A category include first responders and health care workers. Those in the Phase 1B category include people age 65 or older, as well as those 16 and older with an underlying health condition such as cancer, chronic kidney disease, heart conditions, obesity and pregnancy.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services last week directed states to expand vaccine eligibility to teachers, school staffers, bus drivers and licensed child care providers. Tompkins said those groups will still be prioritized for future shots.

The county’s hub site at Walter Hall Park in League City has been processing thousands of vaccine appointments every

day, and traffic has become an issue. Zach Davidson, a county spokesman, urged those with an appointment to come no more than 15 minutes early to allow traffic to move smoothly.

“If you have an appointment (on a given) day, you have a dose with your name on it,” Davidson said. “There’s a fear out there that people have to get their early. We’re asking people, please don’t come any more than 15 minutes before your appointment. You’re gonna take a 30-minute process and turn it into a two-hour process and back up the line for everyone else.”

Galveston County’s announcement follows a similar move by the Houston Health Department on Wednesday. The agency opened a new waitlist for its initial allotment of the onedose Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine. The new waitlist is separate from the original vaccine waitlist for the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, which require two doses.

Both waitlists are available at HoustonEmergency.org/covid19 and are open to all age groups eligible for vaccination under the Texas Department of State Health Services criteria. The waitlists are used to schedule the department’s allotment of appointments at the federal community vaccination center at NRG Park and its other vaccination sites.

To sign up for the Galveston County/UTMB waitlist, go to utmb.clearculture.co or call 877-389-2318.