COVID vaccine live updates: What you should know in South Florida on Wednesday, Jan. 6
COVID-19 vaccines are now available in South Florida, and the rules on who can get a shot, where and when can be confusing.
Here’s what you need to know:
What’s new today?
▪ Gov. Ron DeSantis was scheduled to hold a press conference at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens. But before DeSantis spoke, first responders and those 65 and over, or “tier 1a” residents, were already being inoculated with the COVID-19 vaccine. Local fire chiefs identified people to invite them to the vaccination site. There was no public portal available for seniors to apply to get vaccinated at Hard Rock Wednesday. DeSantis called Wednesday morning’s vaccinations at the Hard Rock “a soft opening” to “make sure things were going well.” The soft opening will last a few days until the site opens to the regular public.
▪ Miami-Dade’s overwhelmed COVID-19 vaccination efforts should expand dramatically in the coming weeks, with almost every willing senior citizen vaccinated by early February and more than 1 million people receiving doses by May, said the head of the county’s public hospital system. Jackson Health CEO Carlos Migoya’s bullish prediction captures just how far Miami-Dade has to go in its vaccination efforts.
▪ Seniors hoping to schedule a COVID-19 vaccination have hit busy signals, glitchy recordings and crashed websites across Florida, including in Miami-Dade and Broward counties. In a Tuesday news conference in Ocala, Gov. DeSantis said he told overwhelmed health departments to “put more people on these phones.”
▪ For months, Floridians, healthcare industry groups and elected officials have struggled to decipher DeSantis’ vague or conflicting orders. Now they’re scrambling to adapt to his ever-changing vaccination strategy. Officials say it’s lack of transparency that has fueled the chaos and confusion Florida is seeing during the largest vaccine rollout in American history.
▪ Florida International University has applied to be a COVID-19 vaccination site in Miami-Dade County. If approved, and depending on how many vaccines it received, FIU could eventually provide doses to members of the university community, including students, faculty, staff and their immediate family members.
▪ Marlins Park in Miami and Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, two popular COVID-19 testing sites, are in the process of being converted into vaccination sites.
▪ More drive-thru vaccination sites are coming to Broward County. On Thursday, former testing site Holiday Park and War Memorial in Fort Lauderdale will reopen as a vaccine site. On Friday, Central Broward Park and Broward County Stadium in Lauderhill will open. Appointments will be required.
▪ Florida’s governor announced Publix will administer about 15,000 doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine in 22 of its stores in Citrus, Hernando and Marion counties. No stores in South Florida yet.
Who can get COVID-19 vaccines in Florida and who cannot? Do you need proof of residency?
Currently, Florida is giving vaccines to healthcare workers, long-term care facility residents and staff, and people 65 and older, including snowbirds. Florida does not plan to require teachers and students to get the vaccine, even if one meant for children becomes available by next school year.
Florida does not have a statewide residency requirement to get the COVID-19 vaccine. This means if you live in Miami-Dade, you can get the vaccine in Broward or vice versa.
Who should not get a COVID-19 vaccine: People who have had a severe allergic reaction to ingredients in the vaccine or had a severe reaction after a previous dose. Ingredients of the Pfizer-BioNTech and the Moderna vaccine can be found on FDA.gov.
What COVID-19 vaccines are available in Florida? How many doses do I need?
Florida has two vaccines available: Pfizer BioNTech and Moderna.
The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine requires two shots, three weeks apart, and can be given to people 16 and older. Moderna’s vaccine requires two shots, one month apart, and can be given to people 18 and older. Neither vaccine will give you COVID-19.
The two vaccines are not interchangeable, however, which means that if your first shot was the Pfizer vaccine, your second shot cannot be the Moderna vaccine, according to the CDC.
COVID-19 vaccination sites in South Florida?
Publix will soon have vaccines available in three of Florida’s 67 counties. None of the counties are in South Florida, which has been hit hardest during the pandemic. That might change in the future. Walgreens, CVS, Winn-Dixie, Walmart and other pharmacies will also eventually have vaccines in stock.
For now, here are your options in South Florida:
Miami-Dade County:
Miami-Dade County still does not have any drive-thru vaccination sites open. Marlins Park in Miami and Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, two popular COVID-19 testing sites, are in the process of being converted into vaccination sites. There is no set opening date yet.
The county has a website, miamidade.gov/vaccine, where it plans to post updates on where seniors, and eventually the rest of the general public, will be able to find and schedule COVID-19 vaccination appointments.
At the moment, there are just two places offering vaccines:
Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach is booking appointments for people 75 and older and will eventually lower it to 65. For more information, call 305-674-2312.
Jackson Health System, the county’s public hospital network, has launched an online portal for people 65 and older to schedule vaccine appointments. All of its appointment slots are currently full, but the hospital plans to add more in the future. To check for available appointments, visit https://jhsmiami.org/comvac/.
Broward County:
The Florida Department of Health in Broward County has created a website to schedule COVID-19 vaccine appointments. As of Monday morning, all of the appointment slots are full. The health department says it plans to add additional appointment slots in the coming weeks at https://browardcovidvaccine.com/.
The appointment-only vaccine sites you will find in the website above include:
▪ Tradewinds Park, 3600 W Sample Rd., Coconut Creek — open 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday through Thursday.
▪ Vista View Park, 4001 SW 142nd Ave., Davie — open 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday through Thursday.
▪ Markham Park & Target Range, 16001 W State Road 84 in Sunrise — open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday
▪ Holiday Park and War Memorial in Fort Lauderdale, a former COVID-19 testing site, will reopen Thursday as a vaccine site.
▪ On Friday, Central Broward Park and Broward County Stadium, 3700 NW 11th Place in Lauderhill, will open.
Broward Health, the hospital network, has all of its vaccination appointments full through February and is no longer accepting appointments for now.
Monroe County:
By next week, people in the Florida Keys who are 65 and older will be able to register online or by phone to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, the Florida Health Department in Monroe County said Wednesday.
But the department couldn’t say when the vaccines will arrive.
So far, Monroe is reserving appointments only for healthcare professionals and people with special needs who are 65 over and are registered with Monroe County Emergency Management — meaning they need special assistance during emergency evacuations and times when storm shelters are open.
For seniors in the general population, a website and phone number to schedule COVID-19 vaccine appointments is still on hold.
This story was originally published January 6, 2021 at 7:16 AM with the headline "COVID vaccine live updates: What you should know in South Florida on Wednesday, Jan. 6."
