Bucks County COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout: Updates

BUCKS COUNTY, PA — As of Friday, there had been 41,062 coronavirus cases reported in Bucks County and 1,053 COVID-related deaths, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health.

This week, Bucks County officials unveiled more details about plans to deliver the coronavirus vaccine, after signing a $14 million contract with AMI Expeditionary Healthcare. The company, which has run three COVID testing sites for the county, will operate six public vaccination clinics in Bucks County, commissioners announced.

But, locally, frustrations remained as officials complained they haven't received nearly enough vaccine from the state — and, ultimately, the federal government — to vaccinate all the people eligible.

Commissioners voiced hopes that might be changing in the next few weeks.

There are concerns about the rollout at the state level, as well. During a news briefing Friday, state officials addressed the bumpy rollout, following a New York Times report that showed Pennsylvania ranked among the nation's very lowest for the number of received doses administered.

Who's Already Vaccinated?

By Friday, 29,621 people in Bucks County had been partially vaccinated against COVID-19 and another 10,133 people had received both doses of the two-shot vaccine. So far, most of the vaccines have been given at Bucks County hospitals to their employees, or by pharmacists visiting the county's nursing homes and other long-term care facilities.

Who Is Eligible To Get The Vaccine Now?

Bucks County, like the rest of Pennsylvania, remains in Phase 1A of the state's four-phase rollout of the coronavirus vaccine. Originally, that meant the only people eligible for a vaccine were healthcare workers and residents and employees of nursing homes and other care facilities.

But state officials dramatically increased the number of Pennsylvanians eligible for the vaccine during the initial phase. Everyone 65 and older, along with residents 16 or older who have health conditions that put them at high risk from the virus immediately were made eligible, adding about 3.5 million Pennsylvania residents to the list of those eligible for the shots.

However, the state is experiencing issues obtaining an adequate supply of the vaccine, officials said last week.

How To Sign Up

Bucks County has created an online hub for information on the coronavirus vaccine. The hub contains detailed information on who is eligible to be vaccinated under each of the state plan's four phases.

On it, there's a form letting residents register for the vaccine. Once registered, residents will be contacted to schedule a vaccination appointment once sufficient supplies arrive, officials said.

Click Here To Register For A COVID-19 Vaccination In Bucks County

Anyone in Bucks County with internet access is encouraged to register for a vaccination online. But, for those who do not have internet access, there is another way. In Bucks County, residents may register for a vaccination by calling the county's coronavirus helpline at 1-800-383-0371.

Where To Get The Vaccine In Bucks County

As of the end of the week, there were no COVID-19 vaccine sites open to the public in Bucks County. But officials hope that will be changing soon.

This week, county commissioners said they will be opening six public vaccination sites, once there is enough vaccine to take care of members of the general public. Three of those sites will be on Bucks County Community College campuses in Bristol, Newtown and Perkasie, where the county had been running COVID testing sites.

Each site should be able to vaccinate 500 people per day once an ample vaccine supply is available, officials said.

The county also has been running an appointment-only clinic in Langhorne where healthcare workers not affiliated with one of the county's hospitals have been receiving shots, but that clinic is not open to the public.

Bucks County hospitals have begun registering members of the public to receive the vaccine. St. Mary Medical Center in Langhorne now is accepting online registrations from people older than 65 and those 16 or older with existing health conditions.The hospital said it plans to open up eligibility in the next several weeks.

See The St. Mary Medical Center COVID-19 Vaccine Form Here

Bucks County also plans to put together smaller teams to visit senior citizen communities, housing authority properties, locations that provide services to the homeless and other locations to administer vaccines, the commissioners said.

Lower Bucks Hospital in Bristol has announced plans to open a COVID-19 vaccination clinic for members of the public some time this month

Hospital spokeswoman Michelle Aliprantis told Patch that the clinic will be in partnership with the Bucks County Department of Health and the state of Pennsylvania. She said plans are to have the clinic running by mid-February.

Doylestown Health's priority is to vaccinate as many appropriate individuals in the current 1A Phase as supply and resources allow, hospital spokesperson Beth Long told Patch:

Doylestown Health physician practices (primary care and specialists) are contacting their patients who are the most vulnerable and at the highest risk of contracting COVID-19 to meet the most immediate demand for vaccine. The patient will be contacted when they are eligible, and offered the opportunity to schedule an appointment at one of two locations: Doylestown Hospital or Doylestown Health Urgent Care (both sites by appointment only). The number of vaccines administered daily, at both locations, will vary by supply of available vaccine, which currently falls far short of demand.

Also, the federal government has announced that, on Feb. 11, 1 million doses of vaccine will be shipped directly to pharmacies across the nation, including in Pennsylvania.

It's not yet clear exactly how many doses the 6,500 pharmacies will be receiving in the direct shipments on Feb. 11, or which specific pharmacies across the nation will receive them. The pharmaceutical partners on this plan in Pennsylvania are TopCo and RiteAid, so it will be at some number of those locations across the state.

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