Manatee COVID vaccinations accelerating. 9,600 more seniors will get shots next week
Manatee County and the state of Florida plan to administer COVID-19 vaccines to 9,600 more seniors next week.
A boost in vaccine supplies and a second, state-supported vaccination site are set to help speed up the process of immunizing the thousands of people still waiting for a shot.
Starting Thursday, a total of 4,500 seniors will begin receiving calls for appointments at the county’s Public Safety Center, 2101 47th Terrace E., Bradenton, where the new vaccination site operated by the Florida Department of Emergency Management is set to open on Monday. And 5,100 additional seniors will start receiving calls early next week for appointments at the county’s drive-thru vaccination site at Tom Bennett Park, 280 Kay Road, Bradenton.
For both sites, patients will continue to be randomly selected from the county’s vaccine standby pool. Seniors should continue to look for a call from 941-742-4300, as well as a text message or email with instructions on how to accept or decline the appointment.
If an appointment is not accepted within two hours, the person will be placed back in the standby pool, according to the county.
Seniors can sign up for Manatee County’s vaccine standby pool by visiting vax.mymanatee.org or dialing 311.
The Public Safety Center site will administer first doses for the next four weeks and second doses the following four weeks, according to Manatee County.
Other local COVID-19 vaccination options
Sarasota County’s vaccine waiting list is open to qualifying Florida seniors. Sign-up at at scgov.net or dial 941-861-8297 for phone assistance.
Retailers participating in the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program are offering vaccines locally. They are:
- Publix; Check for availability at publix.com/covid-vaccine.
- Winn-Dixie; Check for availability at winndixie.com/pharmacy/covid-vaccine.
- CVS; Check for availability at cvs.com/immunizations/covid-19-vaccine.
This story was originally published March 4, 2021 at 5:46 PM.