COVID vaccine live updates: What you should know in South Florida on Friday, Jan. 8
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?
▪ A bipartisan group from Florida’s congressional delegation sent a letter to Gov. Ron DeSantis Friday afternoon, requesting a briefing on the state’s tumultuous COVID-19 vaccination process so they can provide basic information to their constituents, including the timeline, order and roles of the state and county government in making the shots available.
▪ Florida is sending mixed signals to foreigners getting COVID vaccines. While some health officials in South Florida are encouraging anyone who meets the age requirements to make an appointment, whether tourists can get vaccinated or not remains largely up to hospitals’ discretion, even as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has said he draws a distinction between transient residents and medical tourists.
▪ Leon Medical Centers are now giving COVID-19 vaccines to seniors 65 and older in South Florida. Pasteur and Wellmax Medical Centers are hoping to do the same soon.
▪ A preliminary study by drug maker Pfizer found its COVID-19 vaccine candidate seems to be effective against new strains of the virus that are spreading rapidly in the U.K. and South Africa. Nearly half of new COVID variant cases in the U.S. are in Florida.
▪ Florida Corrections Secretary Mark Inch has submitted a request that could clear the way for thousands of state prisoners who are 65 and older to get a coronavirus vaccine, but it has yet to be approved by state health officials.
▪ Miami-Dade County will begun scheduling appointments again at 4 p.m. Friday at miamidade.gov/vaccine. After 15 minutes, about 2,000 appointments were made filling up all slots. On Thursday, slots also filled up in 15 minutes.
▪ More than 380,000 Floridians have gotten their first shot of the COVID-19 vaccine. Of those, about 15,000 have completed the second in their two-shot series. But getting the in-demand vaccine doesn’t mean you’re in the clear. Public health experts say social distancing, hand washing and mask wearing are crucial parts of stopping the spread — and that includes post-vaccine.
▪ Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens began offering COVID-19 vaccines Friday to seniors 65 and older and also frontline healthcare workers. It’s the first state-run testing site in Miami-Dade County to offer vaccines. Appointments can be made by calling 888-499-0840.
▪ On Friday morning, Baptist Health’s website to book COVID-19 vaccine appointments went live — but not without technical errors and glitches. Instead of slots quickly filling up like they did elsewhere, Baptist’s site seemed to benefit those who kept trying. The hospital says it took about two hours for slots to fill up. More appointments are expected to be added soon at Baptisthealth.net/vaccine.
▪ Seniors across Florida have had to camp overnight to get the COVID-19 vaccine. Some can’t get an appointment because of overloaded web portals glitching. Hospitals are struggling to create systems to effectively distribute the vaccine. Others have been giving fast-passes to wealthy donors and friends, allowing them to skip the line. At least three South Florida hospital systems — have reached out and offered vaccines to some donors in advance of the general public.
▪ Sen. Rick Scott has called for a federal investigation into Florida’s coronavirus vaccine distribution, citing reports that donors of a South Florida nursing home are being offered life-saving shots ahead of the general public.
▪ Scratch Memorial Healthcare System as a COVID-19 vaccine option for now. Memorial has booked all its vaccine appointments, spokesman Kerting Baldwin said Thursday. The last slot was given out Wednesday.
▪ A new appointment-only vaccination site opens Friday at Central Broward Park and Broward County Stadium, 3700 NW 11th Place in Lauderhill. All appointment slots are full for now. More are expected to be added in the coming weeks at https://browardcovidvaccine.com/.
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:
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.
The county also began scheduling appointments through the website Thursday and Friday afternoon for its new drive-thru vaccination site at Tropical Park, 7900 SW 40th St.; at the Baptist hospital system; or facilities run by the state’s Department of Health.
Slots filled up within minutes. The county is hoping to add additional appointments in the future.
Marlins Park in Miami, a popular COVID-19 testing site, is in the process of being converted into a vaccination site, date still unknown.
At the moment, here are the other 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. Call 305-674-2312 to schedule an appointment, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday through Sunday.
▪ 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/.
▪ Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens on Friday began providing vaccinations by appointment to seniors and frontline healthcare workers. Appointments began at 8 a.m. and filled up quickly. By calling 888-499-0840 or the TTY line at 888-256-8918 can sign-up for an update when vaccination slots will be open again.
▪ Florida International University has applied to be a vaccination site and is waiting to hear back from the Florida Department of Health.
▪ Baptist Health, one of the county’s largest private hospitals, began offering COVID-19 vaccine appointments Friday to seniors 65 and older and to those at risk of falling seriously ill with the disease. Slots were full within two hours. The hospital expects to have additional appointments available in the future. To check for appointments, visit Baptisthealth.net/vaccine.
▪ Miami-Dade County has also begun contacting homebound seniors age 65 and older who live in county facilities or receive county services to offer vaccination appointments.
▪ Miami Beach plans to begin administering COVID-19 vaccines to some seniors living in affordable housing or who are confined to their homes. Miami Beach Fire Rescue, which received 600 doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, is expected to begin on-site vaccinations Wednesday, Jan. 6, at the Council Towers North senior affordable housing building.
Broward County:
Memorial Healthcare System is no longer offering Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines to senior citizens. All slots are full for now. Once more slots open, appointments can be made at the MyChart portal, https://mychart.mhs.net for current Memorial Healthcare patients. Others will have to call 954-276-4340.
The appointment-only vaccine locations listed in the website above are:
▪ The Memorial Regional Conference Center, 3501 Johnson St. in Hollywood, noon to 7:30 p.m. Mondays, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Tuesday through Friday.
▪ Memorial Specialty Pharmacy, 9581 Premier Pkwy. in Miramar, 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday.
The Florida Department of Health in Broward County has created a website to schedule COVID-19 vaccine appointments. As of Monday, 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 listed on 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 reopened Thursday as a vaccine site.
▪ Central Broward Park and Broward County Stadium, 3700 NW 11th Pl. in Lauderhill, opened Friday.
Broward Health, the hospital network, has all of its vaccination appointments full through February and is no longer accepting appointments for now.
All Cleveland Clinic Florida locations, including its Weston campus, have run out of vaccination appointments for now. Cleveland Clinic said it will resume scheduling appointments through its website for current patients once it gets more doses. To check for slots, visit https://my.clevelandclinic.org/landing/covid-19-vaccine/florida
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 8, 2021 at 7:54 AM with the headline "COVID vaccine live updates: What you should know in South Florida on Friday, Jan. 8."
