Disneyland Resort Opens As Vaccination Supersite In Orange County

ANAHEIM, CA — The Disneyland Resort, Orange County's largest employer, will be a new coronavirus vaccination supersite, Orange County Health Care Agency and the Board of Supervisors announced Monday. The theme park that closed to guests and workers alike in March will utilize its famed parking areas, line management, and open space outside of the parks to host what is hoped to be the ultimate cure to reopening the main gates.

The County of Orange is operating the site at a guest parking area. Disneyland Resort cast members will not be prioritized over others.

Opening this week to large-scale vaccinations, Disneyland is the first large-scale vaccination venue in the county.

Disneyland Resort's chief medical officer, Dr. Pamela Hymel, weighed in on the opening.

"Disneyland Resort is proud to help support Orange County and the City of Anaheim with the use of our parking lot, and we are grateful for all of their efforts to combat COVID-19," Hymel said. "After a year in which so many in our community have faced unprecedented hardship and uncertainty, there is now reason for optimism with the administration of a vaccine."

After shuttering in March to visitors, Disneyland Resort reopened Downtown Disney to shopping and dining in July. By December, amid a coronavirus surge, outside eating shut down due to the most recent coronavirus outbreak. Buena Vista Street remains open to shoppers, with strict rules for wearing masks, social distancing, and a plethora of handwashing stations. During the shutdown, thousands of park employees have lost their jobs due to the lengthy closure, though large scale vaccinations could be a sign of better days to come.

Anaheim Mayor Harry Sidhu shared how devastating coronavirus has been to his city, with most of their businesses largely centered on tourism.

Read: Disneyland Officials Talk Closure Fallout, Anaheim Stores Hurting

"Coronavirus has brought both a public health crisis and economic devastation,” Sidhu says. “With this supersite, we will begin to overcome both. Every vaccination done in Anaheim will help to save lives and speed the reopening and recovery of our city.”

Other theme parks in the county are slated for similar use soon.

In what is considered "the heart of Orange County," Disneyland "has stepped up to host the county's first Super Point of Dispensing or POD site — undertaking a monumental task in our vaccination distribution process," Andrew Do, acting chairman of the Board of Supervisors, said Monday.

Those interested in receiving the COVID-19 vaccine can view the phased tiers of eligibility and other important vaccination information at OC Health Care Agency’s website, www.COVIDVaccineFacts.com. According to the agency, the success of the vaccination distribution plan and the Super point of distribution sites is dependent on everyone understanding where they fall in the phased, tiered plan.

"Individuals attempting to receive a vaccine ahead of schedule will overload the system," they said, "making it even more challenging to meet this urgent need. We appreciate the public’s patience and understanding."

Through its “Operation Independence,” the county has established a goal of completing all county vaccinations by July 4, 2021.

According to Supervisor Don Wagner, it is important to "vaccinate as many willing people as possible for COVID-19, and we need the space to do it."

Theme parks in Orange County, closed for many months, have space in spades, especially in their vast, empty parking areas.

Knott's Berry Farm will also host a supersite, according to Supervisor Doug Chaffee. According to Chaffee, the Orange County Fairgrounds in Costa Mesa are also on the table to host a vaccination supersite.

Ultimately, the county aims to have five regional supersites. An app will be made available to "ensure a smooth and effective distribution of the vaccine as quickly as possible," says Orange County Supervisor Lisa Bartlett. That app will provide the information you need to make appointments through your employer to receive your vaccine.

Disneyland Resort is the first and only supersite in the immediate future due to the coronavirus vaccine's resources and doses.

"We don't have enough vaccine to open another one," Chaffee said of opening a second supersite. "We can't open up too much until we have the quantity of vaccine we need."

The Disneyland Resort site will be operational later this week, with more details expected at Tuesday's Board of Supervisors meeting.

Most of those eligible to be vaccinated will be contacted through their employer to schedule an appointment via a third-party app developed in cooperation with the county.

Though hosted at the resort parking areas, vaccine distribution will be managed through a phased, tiered approach established by the California Department of Public Health.

Currently, vaccinations are available to Orange County residents and those who work in Orange County who meet the criteria for what is referred to as Phase 1a, all tiers. That group includes law enforcement first responders in high-risk communities and recently expanded to include those aged 75 and older.

Multiple mobile sites are operating throughout the county, with officials currently working to vaccinate the elderly in skilled nursing facilities and assisted living facilities, Chaffee said.

Orange County CEO Frank Kim said a recent county survey shows that 54% of hospitalized COVID-19 patients are 65 or older, and 72% of the intensive care unit patients are 65 and older.

More shipments of vaccines were expected on Monday. The county has 40,000 doses in storage, Kim said.

"We're doing about 3,000 a day and the three fire department sites, which is good," Kim said. "We'll probably be doing two or three thousand vaccinations a day when we get our system ironed out."

Chaffee said county officials are also seeking volunteers to help with a range of services from traffic control to computer registrations. Volunteers can register at volunteers.oneoc.org.

Supervisor Wagner added, “I thank Disneyland Resort and the City of Anaheim for stepping up in the shared effort to give OC residents protection against the virus.”

All of this is imperative, as an additional 3,259 new patients tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday, and 29 more residents were reported to have succumbed to the disease. In all, nearly 200,000 residents have tested positive since the pandemic began, and over 2,000 have lost their lives since March.

Read also:

28,000 Employees Laid Off At Disneyland, Walt Disney World

Downtown Disney, Buena Vista Street Closes Dining Amid New Orders

Disneyland Resort Furloughs 1,800 More Workers Amid Park Shutdown

This report will be updated. City News Service contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on the Los Alamitos-Seal Beach Patch