Texas rolls out vaccine scheduler

According to data from Texas Health and Human Services, 40.47 percent of Wilbarger County residents over 16 have received at least on dose of Covid-19 vaccine and 31.45 % of the county is fully vaccinated.

There are plenty of opportunities to get vaccinated, as Gov. Greg Abbott has opened vaccinations up to all Texans. Family Pharmacy has been allocated 300 doses of Moderna vaccine for delivery this week and is accepting appointments on its website.

Wilbarger County reports no active Covid cases as of Monday, There have been 1,599 confirmed and 284 probable cases with 55 fatalities.

As Texas opens COVID-19 vaccine eligibility to everyone age 16 and older, the Texas Department of State Health Services is launching the Texas Public Health Vaccine Scheduler. The scheduler gives people one place to sign up for a COVID-19 shot through multiple public health departments, including the eight DSHS public health regions, which provide public health services in nearly 200 Texas counties, and more than a dozen local health entities across the state.

Texas residents can visit getthevaccine.dshs.texas.gov to create a profile that includes their contact information, demographic details, and preferred time of day and days of the week for an appointment. Within a day, people eligible to be vaccinated will be matched with the next available appointment within their home county and preferred times. If none are available, the scheduler will continue to search for appointments as new clinics are scheduled and contact individuals when they have an appointment.

While most people will sign up online, a toll-free number is available to assist special populations that have difficulty using the online registration tool, including older adults over age 65, people with disabilities, and those with limited Internet access or other barriers to using technology. People in those groups can call 1-833-832-7067 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. seven days a week to enroll in the scheduler and get help making an appointment. If there is no a participating health department in their area, they will be referred to local providers conducting vaccination near them.

The Texas Public Health Vaccine Scheduler will not replace all COVID-19 vaccine registration in the state. Many entities – including pharmacies, medical practices and some public health departments – are operating their own registration systems and will continue to do so. People who want to be vaccinated should continue to look for available vaccine at those providers, as well. Links to other vaccine scheduling tools are available at dshs.texas.gov/coronavirus/immunize/vaccine.