COVID vaccine being shipped again to Tri-Cities. Here’s the outlook for next week

COVID-19 vaccine is on its way to the Tri-Cities, allowing the Benton County Fairgrounds to prepare to open Tuesday through Saturday, organizers said Friday evening.

Opening for those appointments, all for second doses, were posted online at prepmod.doh.wa.gov Sunday morning.

More doses also were expected to show up at Tri-Cities area pharmacies in the coming week, and a COVID-19 vaccine clinic is scheduled for Sunday and Monday, Feb. 21-22, at the Walla Walla County Fairgrounds.

The shipments to Washington state for the coming week are expected to include nearly 263,600 doses, split between 146,100 first doses and about 117,500 doses.

The two COVID vaccines being used so far in the United States, the Pfizer and the Modern vaccines, each require an initial dose and then a second “booster” dose several weeks later.

The state of Washington expects shipments to increase by 5,700 doses the week of Feb. 28 and by another 22,950 the next week.

Second doses will continue to be prioritized, with allocations increasing for those shots, but holding steady at 117,460 for first doses at least until the second week of March.

The state Department of Health said the projected increase in doses is encouraging, but still does not match demand.

The shipments in the coming week are expected to be about 173,200 fewer than what providers had requested.

Pharmacy vaccines

Additional vaccine also is expected to be shipped to Washington state pharmacies in the coming week.

The week of Feb. 15, pharmacies in Washington state received about 22,500 doses. A larger number is expected to arrive this week to allow more pharmacies to participate, although the number of doses is not yet known.

Walmart, Rite Aid, Fred Meyer, Safeway, Albertsons and Costco could receive vaccine for the coming week through the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program.

Those trying to find a dose of the COVID vaccine may check 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.

The local health district recommended that people with internet access check pharmacy web pages for vaccination availability and sign-up information to avoid overwhelming their phone lines.

The Richland Senior Association also has started a toll-free help line for people without internet access or without the computer skills to navigate online sign-up sites. Call 800-595-4070 and leave a voicemail message.

As of Friday, 44,504 COVID vaccinations had been administered in Benton and Franklin counties, with 8,739 people fully immunized with both doses of the vaccine.

Tri-Cities fairgrounds

All appointments at the fairgrounds in the coming week will be for people seeking their second doses of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine after already receiving a first dose at the fairgrounds in Kennewick.

To register for an appointment, go to PrepMod.doh.wa.gov and click on “Find a Clinic.” On the next page scroll down to look for locations and dates with open appointments.

The Tri-Cities fairgrounds will be open 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.

No vaccines arrived for appointments scheduled for Thursday Feb. 18 to Saturday Feb. 20 at the Tri-Cities fairgrounds because of cold and snowy weather in the Eastern United States.

About 90% of the shipments to the state of Washington were delayed, the state Department of Health estimated.

People who had appointments for the fairgrounds for Feb. 18-20 were earlier sent emails allowing them to register for the next week before registration opens to others.

People receiving their second dose will need to bring the COVID-19 vaccination record card they should have been given when they received their first dose.

The second “booster” dose of Pfizer vaccine may be given three weeks after the first dose. People who received the Moderna vaccine should wait four weeks. The same brand of vaccine should be used for the first and second doses.

The fairgrounds will continue allowing car holding lines to form to use up any extra vaccine daily, but it will only be for people seeking their second doses. They also will need their vaccination record card.

People who cannot find their card may be able to access their vaccination record at the Washington state Department of Health’s online immunization records system at wa.myir.net.

Walla Walla fairgrounds

Walla Walla County received its full Pfizer vaccine allotment for the week.

It plans to administer 3,000 first-dose vaccines on Sunday, Feb. 21, and Monday, Feb. 22, at the Walla Walla County Fairgrounds.

People eligible for the vaccine may register at www.covidwwc.com. After verifying eligibility, click on “Schedule an Appointment.”

Some appointments remained open Friday evening.

Those without internet access may call 509-524-2647 and leave a message.

Golf carts and wheel chairs will be available at the fairgrounds for people with limited mobility.

In-home vaccinations

Plans are being made to vaccinate homebound people in Benton and Franklin counties to protect them from the coronavirus.

Community groups that serve seniors and others who are homebound are creating lists of people who want to be vaccinated.

Local fire agencies, as part of their community risk reduction efforts, will be providing the vaccines in homes and monitoring individuals for a reaction, according to public health officials.

Those eligible for COVID vaccinations in Washington state so far include health care workers, emergency medical technicians, staff and residents of long-term care facilities for the elderly, people 65 and older, and certain people 50 and older in multigenerational households.

This story was originally published February 20, 2021 at 5:00 AM.