Massachusetts Gets Big Boost In Coronavirus Vaccine Allotment

MASSACHUSETTS — State health officials say a one-time, 830,000-dose shipment of the coronavirus vaccine from the federal government is coming at the right time.

While 1.5 million Massachusetts residents are fully vaccinated and 4 million have received at least one dose of the vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer, there has been an increase in hospitalizations among younger people. And, even as more people get vaccinated, the positive test rate has been stuck at 2.5 percent in Massachusetts for the past several weeks.

Learn more about getting a COVID-19 vaccine in Massachusetts at Patch's information hub.

The extra shipment comes on top of the regular, weekly allotment of coronavirus vaccine the state has been receiving and will be divided between community health centers, pharmacies, and state-run vaccination sites. Massachusetts plans to begin offering the vaccine to all state residents over the age of 16 on April 19.

While the extra doses are good news for Massachusetts, the state is still struggling to get people scheduled for appointments to get the vaccine. The problem of not enough appointments is expected to be compounded in coming weeks as more people become eligible to receive the vaccine.