Mass Vaccination Sites Ahead For MD, Vaccine Eligibility Expands

MARYLAND — As the federal government works to ramp up production of the COVID-19 vaccine, Gov. Larry Hogan said the state is preparing for when more vaccines are available.

Maryland has received roughly 10,000 doses a day from the federal government, and about 2 million people eligible to receive it "just in phase one," Hogan said at a news conference Tuesday afternoon.

Starting Monday, Feb. 1, the state will expand COVID-19 vaccine eligibility through hospital providers for those who are severely immunocompromised, including those undergoing chemotherapy and with other medical conditions. This will include cancer patients currently in active treatment, end-stage renal disease patients, those with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, recipients of solid organ transplants, sickle-cell disease patients and diabetic patients, according to authorities.

Expanding eligibility ensures "no vaccination goes to waste," according to Dr. David Marcozzi, who is the COVID-19 incident commander for the University of Maryland Medical System. "By establishing a robust infrastructure now while vaccine supply remains" limited, he said "a variety of providers will be prepared to administer them" when they become available. He said only one site had seen vaccines wasted in Maryland and that was due to a failed refrigeration system.

Hundreds of Maryland National Guard members will be redeployed from the nation's Capitol to assist with setting up mass vaccination COVID-19 sites in the next week, the governor said.

Six Flags America in Prince George's County will serve as a mass vaccination site to open no later than Friday, Feb. 5, the governor said.

The Baltimore City Convention Center will begin offering vaccinations by next Friday, Feb. 5, as well, he said.

The University of Maryland Medical System and Baltimore City Health Department will open a vaccination site at M&T Stadium "as soon as we are able to secure higher allotment of vaccines from the federal government," Hogan said.

Maryland needs 4 million doses to vaccinate those in phase one of its distribution plan, and it currently only has 110,000 first doses available, nearly all of which have been spoken for, the governor said.

About 95 percent of the state's vaccine allocation has already been "deployed, distributed and distributed to front-line vaccinators," Hogan said.

People can find active vaccination sites here.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is now requiring Maryland to set aside nearly 20,000 of its weekly allocated doses long-term care facilities, Hogan said, which leaves 50,000 doses weekly for the remaining providers in the state.

He said the supply was extremely limited.

"People are really sick of this virus,"Hogan said. "We're completely fed up and frustrated right now ... No one is more frustrated than I am, and no one is more eager to get this pandemic behind us than I am."

Maryland is taking measures "to push the federal government for more vaccines" and leveraging every resource "to get shots into arms as quickly as possible," Hogan said, "and we will not rest until the vaccine is available to every Marylander who wants one."

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See Also:

• COVID-19 Vaccine Access Expands In Maryland To Include 65-Plus

Here is the latest COVID-19 vaccination data as of Tuesday, Jan. 26:

This article originally appeared on the Bel Air Patch