Registration for 2nd COVID doses at Tri-Cities fairgrounds begins Friday

The Tri-Cities mass vaccination site will switch from offering first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to second doses starting Tuesday.

Registration for 2nd doses is expected to open online the afternoon Friday, Feb. 12.

The site does not expect to receive enough doses of the vaccine to open registration for people needing their first doses next week, said the Southeast Washington Incident Management Team in a statement.

“The Washington state Department of Health has announced that second doses will be a priority,” it said in a statement as organizers waited to hear how much vaccine they would receive for next week.

Those looking for a first dose can check at bit.ly/BFHDvaccinesites, where the Benton Franklin Health District maintains a list of places that may be giving vaccines — primarily pharmacies, hospitals and medical clinics

In the previous two weeks, openings for all appointments for the fairgrounds in the coming week were posted on Friday afternoon starting about 3:30 p.m.

The two vaccines approved for use in the United States are made by Pfizer and Moderna, and to be more effective against the coronavirus require a booster shot given weeks later.

People should get the same brand of vaccination for their second dose as their first dose.

Everyone in Washington state should be given a card with the type and date of vaccination when they receive their first dose. They should bring the card to their appointment for the second dose.

The drive-through COVID vaccination site at the Benton County Fairgrounds opened Jan. 25 and on that day gave about 500 Moderna vaccinations.

Those people are due for their second shot four weeks later, Feb. 22, or not long after that.

Organizers at the fairgrounds say they will make sure they have Moderna vaccine available there for second doses.

But most people receiving vaccines at the fairgrounds in Kennewick received the Pfizer vaccine, which has just a three-week waiting period for the second dose.

2nd Pfizer vaccination

That means people will start to come due for Pfizer second doses Tuesday, Feb. 16, while many people eligible for the vaccine are still trying to make appointments at the fairgrounds for their first dose.

The second dose can be received as long as six weeks after the first dose, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

But Dr. Umair Shah, the Washington state secretary of health, is recommending people try to get the booster dose as soon as possible after three weeks for the Pfizer vaccine and four weeks for the Moderna vaccine.

The fairgrounds team, which includes members of the Washington National Guard and Tri-Cities area paramedics, have given as many as 300 shots an hour.

The limiting factor for the site is how many doses are available from the state.

But the federal government is sending Washington state enough second doses to match first doses, Shah said after touring the Kennewick fairgrounds drive-thru clinic this week.

Registering for vaccination

To register for a second vaccination at the fairgrounds next week, go to PrepMod.doh.wa.gov.

Click on “Find a Clinic.” On the next page you do not need to fill out the form at the top of the page.

Instead, scroll down to look for the Benton County Fairgrounds clinics listed for each day that registration is open and whether any appointments are currently available.

People without internet access may call the Washington state Department of Health “COVID-19 Assistance Hotline” (1-800-525-0127, then press #) during regular business hours, but wait times may be long.

An operator will fill out a registration form over the phone if any appointments are available.

The Richland Senior Association also has started a toll-free help line for seniors who don’t have computer access or are having trouble navigating online appointment systems.

Call 800-595-4070 and leave a voicemail message with your name, phone number and what you are calling about. A volunteer will pick up the message and call you back.

The Washington state Department of Health has discussed reserving some appointments for people who make reservations by phone, but no specific plan has been announced.

Extra vaccine doses

When about 3,900 open appointments were posted last Friday for vaccinations this week, it took until just after noon for all of them to be claimed. The previous week all appointments were claimed within a couple of hours.

Wednesday afternoon this week about 100 openings were reposted for Thursday because of anticipated no shows and expected extra vaccine. Vials are supposed to hold five doses, but some have enough that six doses can be drawn.

A car holding line also forms each afternoon at the fairgrounds for any extra vaccine so none goes to waste.

However, people need to be qualified to receive the vaccine. That now includes any Washington resident 65 or older or certain people 50 or older in multigenerational households.

Go to FindYourPhaseWA.org to determine your eligibility and, if possible, make a copy or take a screenshot to take with you when you go to be vaccinated.

People with appointments on Saturday, Feb. 13, are encouraged to show up at the fairgrounds on Friday, a day early, because of the snow expected on Saturday.

This story was originally published February 11, 2021 at 5:06 PM.