The Hays County Health Department will be given almost 2,000 doses of the coronavirus vaccine after the Texas Department of State Health Services tapped the county as a COVID-19 Vaccination Hub. The hubs, which are dotted across the state, are meant to act as centralized vaccination sites.
Hays County Judge Ruben Becerra said it's unclear when the county will receive the shipment, however. "Anything can happen between now and an actual delivery," he told reporters Monday.
County officials have promised that a registration portal will go live on haysinformed.com once the county has the doses. Priority will be given to people in the 1A and 1B categories: health care workers, long-term care facility residents, people 65 years and older, and those with underlying health conditions.
"Having them here is key," Becerra said. "We can see [the number of vaccines] on a computer screen; we can say they're in that truck down the street on I-35 – it doesn't matter. I can't bring our communities hopes up until they are in my possession."
Roughly 7,000 people in Hays County have been inoculated with at least one dose, according to a state dashboard with data on vaccine distribution and administered doses in Texas. Only 831 people have been fully vaccinated.
Exactly how the county's hub will operate is unclear. In terms of scale, Becerra said the county has the ability to run anything from a "clinic" to a "performing arts center," depending on the number of doses received.
The CommuniCare Health Center in Kyle was also notified it will be given an allotment of 975 doses. State Rep. Erin Zwiener wrote in a Facebook post that CommuniCare will be working together with the county to provide public vaccine access through the county portal. Qualified people will be able to schedule an appointment online when the vaccine is available.
Zwiener said it's critical to get the vaccine into Hays County because there are more cases and deaths per capita here than in other Central Texas counties. At the moment, however, the demand for the vaccine still exceeds supply.
"I'm asking everybody to sit tight, be patient," she said. "But also be persistent in looking for opportunities to get vaccinated. More vaccine is coming every week."
Got a tip? Email Riane Roldan at rroldan@kut.org. Follow her on Twitter @RianeRoldan.
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