Publix vaccine appointments fill up fast

On the first day Floridians 40 and older were eligible to sign up for the COVID-19 vaccine, Publix appointments were quickly booked up Friday morning in South Florida, indicating a strong demand as access rapidly begins to expand across the state.

Beginning its sign-up window at 7 a.m. on Friday, all Publix vaccine appointments in Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade were completely booked within 30 minutes. Many other counties in Florida had their appointments filled up within the same time frame, including Orange, Seminole, Pasco, and Okeechobee.

Publix, which administers vaccines in 43 counties that have in-store pharmacies in Florida, is among the many companies rolling out vaccinations across the state. The appointments that were reserved Friday will be for Monday and Tuesday with the Moderna vaccine.

People will have their next sign-up opportunity through Publix at 7 a.m. Monday. Publix typically opens its online registration portal at 7 a.m. every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

Friday’s quick sign-up comes in between two significant eligibility expansions for the COVID-19 vaccine in Florida. After focusing on the 60 and older population for the beginning of the vaccine rollout, Gov. Ron DeSantis last week allowed Floridians 50 and older to begin receiving the vaccine.

After dropping the age requirement by a decade this week, the eligibility pool will largely expand this coming week because anyone 18 or older in Florida will be

allowed to sign up for the vaccine.

Publix has said it’s following the federal directive to prioritize vaccinations for teachers, school staff, child care workers in pre-primary, primary, and secondary schools, as well as Head Start and Early Head Start programs, and those who work as or for licensed child care providers.

After people in those groups finish making appointments, remaining appointments would be available to anyone older than 40.

Second-dose appointments are not affected by the change, Publix said.