COVID-19 Vaccinations Near Studio City: LA To Give Out 90K Shots

STUDIO CITY, CA — More Angelenos are expected to get vaccinated against the coronavirus this week than any week of the pandemic so far. Los Angeles County is receiving its largest supply of doses just as California begins to open up eligibility to adults 50 and older.

The spike in supply is expected to be temporary. Health officials expect the vaccine supply to continue to be tight in April before opening wide up in May. In Los Angeles, as elsewhere around the nation, there is a race to vaccinate as many people as possible before another surge in cases can overwhelm the healthcare system.

There are seven city-run mass-vaccination sites in Los Angeles in addition to pharmacies and medical offices also taking appointments. Schedule a COVID-19 vaccination appointment in Los Angeles here.

Los Angeles' seven city-run COVID-19 vaccination sites and its Mobile Outreach for Vaccine Equity program will offer over 90,000 vaccine doses this week, including about 75,000 first-dose appointments and 16,000 second-dose appointments, officials announced Monday.

The city is expected to receive 42,000 Moderna vaccines, 27,000 Pfizer vaccines and 22,000 Johnson & Johnson vaccines during the week, according to Mayor Eric Garcetti's office. A majority of the vaccines will be administered at the permanent vaccine sites at Dodger Stadium, San Fernando Park, Hansen Dam, Crenshaw Christian Center, Lincoln Park, Pierce College and the University of Southern California's University Park campus.

Starting Thursday, the city will offer vaccines to anyone over the age of 50, in accordance with state and county public health guidance.

"Every person who gets vaccinated is helping Los Angeles take one more critical step towards ending the pandemic," Garcetti said. "The more vaccine supply we receive, the sooner we are able to get those doses into the arms of Angelenos safely and quickly. If you are 50 or older, this week it will be time for you to roll up your sleeve and get vaccinated, so we can get our lives back to normal."

Last week, the nation saw an uptick in new coronavirus cases after weeks of declines. On Monday, CDC chief, Dr. Rochelle Walensky sounded the alarm at the White House COVID-19 Response Team briefing. She said the uptick mirrors a similar pattern that played out in the most recent European surge driven by new COVID-19 variants.

"Right now, I'm scared," she said.

President Joe Biden urged states to show restraint in reopening, and promising we are close to the finish line in the race to vaccinate American adults

Toward that end, Los Angeles has also turned to Mobile Outreach for Vaccine Equity (MOVE) teams, which bring vaccines into underserved neighborhoods. This week, they will deploy to areas in South L.A., East L.A./downtown, and the San Fernando Valley, including Green Meadows, Harvard Park, Boyle Heights, Westlake, Arleta, Sylmar and Glassell Park. That program has administered more than 46,000 doses so far, with 90% of them going into people of color and those in communities most impacted by COVID-19.

Last week, the MOVE program administered 12,000 doses, and the city's permanent sites administered more than 70,000.

About 40% of last week's doses were administered in the sites operating in highly impacted areas: USC and Crenshaw Christian Center in South Los Angeles, San Fernando Park and Hansen Dam in the East Valley and Lincoln Park in East L.A.

The median age of patients being vaccinated dropped from 59 to 56 last week, as eligibility widens and includes a range of occupations and ages, officials said. The median age for vaccine recipients who identified as Hispanic or Native American is 53.

The city-run sites are open to people with appointments from Tuesday through Saturday between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. People can sign up at Coronavirus.LACity.org/VaxAppointment.

Second doses are offered to people who received their first Moderna shot between March 2 and March 6 or their first Pfizer shot between March 9 and March 13. Second dose appointment details should have been sent to patients automatically.

City News Service and Patch Staffer Paige Austin contributed to this report.