Austin Public Health

Austin Public Health leaders held their weekly COVID-19 briefing Friday morning. Moving forward, APH says it will only hold briefings every other week, with the next one scheduled for May 7.

Supply of the vaccine is outstripping demand, so providers in the area are making it easier for people to get vaccinated without an appointment.

Austin Public Health is hosting a walk-up COVID-19 vaccine clinic at the Delco Activity Center this Thursday and Friday from noon until 7:30 p.m. or until all its vaccines are administered.

“We must be flexible,” APH Director Stephanie Hayden-Howard said Friday. “Our goal is to provide vaccines to our community and meet them where they are.”

UT Austin and Austin Public Health said demand has decreased, so they are looking at changing how they administer vaccines.

The department said it's looking at ways to vaccinate people at sites like apartment complexes and Austin Independent School District meal pickups, rather than requiring them to sign up online.

Anyone 18 years or older will be eligible to schedule an appointment. The state opened vaccine eligibility at the end of March, but APH has been continuing to prioritize appointments for those it sees as most vulnerable.

Hospitalizations and case numbers are flat and could worsen. So the area likely won't move into stage 2 of the area's risk-based guidelines before the second week of May.

Dr. Mark Escott also said that while cases and hospitalizations are declining, the slow rate of decline will delay a move to a lower risk level.

After thousands of appointments were left unfilled last week, the health authority is expanding eligibility — and could open it up even further.