MD Expands Vaccine Preregistration To Residents 16 And Older

MARYLAND — All Marylanders age 16 and older can now pre-register for a COVID-19 vaccine at a mass vaccination site, Gov. Larry Hogan (R) announced Thursday.

The news comes two days after the state moved into Phase 2B of its vaccination plan — which expanded eligibility to residents age 16 and up with disabilities and underlying medical conditions that increase the risk for severe COVID-19 illness.

Other groups eligible to receive a vaccine under Phase 2B include people age 60 and older, nursing home staff and residents, frontline health care workers, and those with certain health conditions.

"As a result of the robust infrastructure that we have built, our rapidly accelerating vaccination rate, and finally that critical increase in vaccine supply, we will likely be able to make announcements in the days ahead regarding further acceleration of vaccine eligibility phases," Hogan said.

"In preparation for that, effective today, we are immediately opening pre-registration to Phase 3. Every single Marylander who wants a COVID-19 vaccine can now pre-register for an appointment at a mass vaccination site."

Nearly 300,000 residents have already pre-registered for an appointment, the governor said, adding that the "best way to ensure you get a vaccine at any of our sites is to pre-register."

While pre-registration is open to all Marylanders, Hogan said residents in phases one and two will continue to be prioritized for appointments. Those who pre-register can choose their top two preferred sites.

Pre-registering does not guarantee you will immediately get an appointment. It means you will be notified when you are able to make one. Pre-register by visiting covidvax.maryland.gov or calling 1-855-MD-GOVAX.

Future Mass Vaccination Sites Announced

On Thursday, Hogan announced all the locations for the mass vaccination sites that are opening in April. They are located at:

• Maryland State Fairgrounds (Baltimore County)
• Greenbelt Metro Station (Prince George's County)*
• Montgomery College, Germantown (Montgomery County)
• Frederick Community College (Frederick County)
• Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium (Anne Arundel County)
• Ripken Stadium (Harford County)
• The Mall in Columbia (Howard County)

* This is a FEMA-operated site that will primarily serve Prince George's County residents.

Maryland currently has five active mass vaccination clinics. They are located at:

• The Baltimore Convention Center
• Baltimore's M&T Bank Stadium
• Upper Marlboro's Six Flags America
• Waldorf's Regency Furniture Stadium
• Salisbury's Wicomico Youth & Civic Center
• Former Wolf Furniture store in the Hagerstown Premium Outlets

Walk-Up Appointments Offered In Salisbury

Starting Friday, the Wicomico Youth and Civic Center's mass vaccination site in Salisbury will open a no-appointment walk-up line for all eligible Marylanders.

Hogan says other state mass vaccination sites will adopt this system in the coming weeks.

Plans To Reopen Senior Centers In Coming Weeks

The governor announced that the state's health and aging departments will work with local jurisdictions to develop plans that would allow all senior centers to reopen by the end of April, with public health protocols in place.

Vaccination clinics will be held at the facilities ahead of reopenings, he said.

Jurisdictions Must Submit Equity Plans To State

The state has directed all local health officers to submit their equity plans by next week.

"In February, we asked each county to appoint a liaison to our Vaccine Equity Task Force (and) we asked them to produce their own equity plans for their individual jurisdictions. Unfortunately, many local governments still have not done so," Hogan said. "So the Maryland Department of Health is now requiring county health officers to immediately submit their finalized equity plans no later than Monday, April 5."

The governor said the health department will also be providing each jurisdiction with a list of underserved zip codes and a list of specific congregate facilities where they should concentrate their vaccination efforts.

Maryland's Vaccination Data

As of Thursday, Maryland has administered 2,760,176 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. Among those, 1,754,969 were first doses and 927,851 were second doses.

According to Hogan, about 75 percent of residents over the age of 65 have been vaccinated.

Hogan Says Variants Driving Rise in Cases

Maryland's coronavirus cases are back on the rise.

On Thursday, Maryland recorded 1,584 new COVID-19 cases, its greatest one-day increase since Jan. 31, according to state health department data.

The statewide positivity rate is now 5.51 percent, an increase of 0.21 percent in the last 24 hours. On March 1, it was 3.37 percent.

At Thursday's press conference, Hogan said the rise can be attributed to variant strains of the coronavirus that are hitting Maryland. He noted that B.1.1.7 is one of his biggest concerns.

"We're doing sequencing testing for variants at one of the highest levels in the country," Hogan said. "This has enabled us to identify 677 cases of COVID-19 variants in Maryland — 86 percent of which are the B.1.1.7 or U.K. variant."

He added that the state has also detected at least six other variants, including the New York, California, South Africa, and both the B1 and B2 Brazilian strains.

Last month, Hogan lifted restrictions on indoor and outdoor dining, bars, gyms, casinos, and large venues like Camden Yards.

When asked if he reopened too fast, Hogan said no.

"We meet almost every day with our team of experts and epidemiologists and we're following the science. We don't think it had anything to do with reopenings," he said. "The worst cases now are in New York and New England. New York has some of the strictest lockdowns and much more things are closed than we have here."