COVID-19 vaccinations to begin in care facilities
The Shelby County Health Department will begin vaccinating workers and residents at congregate-care facilities, including nursing homes and assisted living facilities, next week, the department said Saturday.
The health department started vaccinating first responders with the Moderna vaccine on Dec. 28 and is continuing to vaccinate law enforcement officers, firefighters and paramedics, said spokesperson Joan Carr.
Doug Mcgowen, chief operating officer for the City of Memphis, said there are 50,000 health care workers and 6,000 first responders in the Shelby County community and “it's going to take a while” to get all of those individuals vaccinated.
Some people in priority group 1a2, which includes funeral home workers and people who are 75 or older, have also been vaccinated by the health department. As of Saturday afternoon, all the available weekend appointments for vaccinations at the department's two drive-thru centers had been filled.
"We will announce early next week when and where drive-thru vaccination will resume for 1a1 groups, funeral/ mortuary workers, and the 75+ population,” the health department said Saturday.
The health department has also started vaccinating staff at mass COVID-19 testing sites.
Staff at other congregate-care facilities, including psychiatric hospitals, detention centers, group housing for individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities and staff of Department of Children's Services residential facilities are also in priority vaccination groups.
Commercial Appeal reporter Max Garland contributed to this report.