Santa Clara County's Expanded Vaccine Access To Include Teachers

SANTA CLARA COUNTY, CA — Santa Clara County announced Wednesday it will expand access to COVID-19 vaccines to include teachers and other essential workers later this month.

Workers in education and childcare, emergency services, and the food and agriculture industries, will be eligible when the county expands access Feb. 28.

County officials said as it expands access it will remain focused on vaccinated impacted areas of the community and older residents at greatest risk of serious illness and death Health Officer Dr. Sara Cody said in a statement.

“As we make progress toward our goal of vaccinating at least 85 percent of our residents age 16 or older by this summer, we are laser focused on ensuring equitable access to vaccinations for those communities most disproportionately affected by COVID-19,” Cody said.

The County Health System is currently scheduling nearly 10,000 vaccination appointments at sites across the county each day, in addition to several vaccination sites now operating in both East San José and Gilroy that do not require an appointment.

“We are working closely with a large network of trusted community partners to ensure that our most impacted communities have access to vaccinations,” said Rocio Luna, Deputy Director of Public Health for the County of Santa Clara.

The move to expand vaccination access follows the county hitting a key milestone with more than half of county residents age 75 and older receiving at least one dose of the vaccine and half of those 65 and older receiving at least one dose, officials said.

Older residents who have not yet been vaccinated are urged to schedule an appointment immediately.