Covid-19 Vaccine Open To All Floridians 18+ Starting April 5

FLORIDA — If you want to get the coronavirus vaccine in Florida but don’t qualify for it yet, say goodbye to age restrictions — all adults will be eligible for vaccination in less than two weeks.

The state is speeding through COVID-19 vaccine eligibility expansions with plans to make the vaccine available to all adults 18 and older starting April 5, Gov. Ron DeSantis said in a video he released Thursday.

“We’re ready to take this step,” he said.

First, though, the vaccine will be offered to all people ages 40 and older in the state starting Monday, March 29. After that, all adults above the age of 18 who want to be vaccinated against the coronavirus can sign up for it.

This is ahead of Pres. Joe Biden’s May 1 target date for eligibility for all American adults, DeSantis said.

Floridians can pre-register at www.myvaccine.fl.gov to make an appointment in their area or contact their local health department if their county has opted out of the state system.

In addition to state and county clinics, more than 1,600 retail pharmacies in Florida offer the vaccine, DeSantis said. This includes more than 730 Publix stores, more than 150 CVS locations, more than 70 Winn-Dixie stores, and more than 125 Sam’s Club and Walmart locations.

Walgreen’s will also add 400 additional locations offering the vaccine throughout the state bringing their total number of Florida locations to more than 600, the governor said.

See Also:

• How To Get The Coronavirus Vaccine In Florida
• Floridians Split On DeSantis' COVID-19 Pandemic Response: Survey

DeSantis has been decreasing the age eligibility for the vaccine in recent weeks. At the start of the vaccine rollout in Florida, it was open to those 65 and older.

Over the past few weeks, he lowered that eligibility to those 60 and older, then to those 50 and older starting this past Monday, March 22, and, next, to those 40 and older March 29.

The governor’s vaccine expansion comes as nearly 6,000 new cases were reported in the state Thursday, according to Florida’s COVID-19 Data and Surveillance Dashboard.

This brings the total number of cases in Florida since the start of the pandemic – including both residents and visitors – to 2,027,429. There have been more than 33,500 COVID-19 deaths in the Sunshine State since the pandemic’s start, as well.