Washington's First Mass Vaccination Sites To Open This Week

OLYMPIA, WA — Washington's first four mass vaccination sites will be up and running by the end of the work week — and more are on the way.

These new vaccination sites, first announced by Gov. Jay Inslee Jan. 18, will largely serve rural Washingtonians. To receive the vaccine at one of the sites, a resident must first qualify to be vaccinated under Phases 1A or 1B1 of the state's vaccination distribution plan.

Once they're cleared, they can make an appointment to get a shot at any of the four sites at:

• Spokane Arena, Spokane
• Clark County Fairgrounds, Ridgefield
• Town Toyota Center, Wenatchee
• Tri-Cities Fairgrounds, Kennewick

Those looking for a place to get vaccinated closer to home can also check the state's full list of approved vaccine providers.

When each mass vaccination site will open will vary slightly depending on the arrival of the vaccine. Shipments of the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine are due Monday for Ridgefield, Wenatchee and Kennewick, but those vaccines also have to thaw before they can be put to use. Spokane will instead administer the Moderna vaccine.

To start, each of the sites will be providing about 500 vaccinations each day, though health officials say they hope to increase that number as the state receives larger, more regular vaccine shipments.

“As our vaccine allocations increase, these sites will provide additional capacity to get people vaccinated quickly and efficiently across the state,” said Dir. Umair A. Shah, the Washington secretary of health. “With much less supply of vaccine than people currently eligible, it is going to take time which will require patience from all of us."

More mass vaccination sites are being planned, both by the state and by local leaders. King County and Pierce County in particular have both announced plans to create their own mass vaccination sites.

The sites are part of Washington state's recent commitment to significantly increase vaccination rates. At a news conference Jan. 18, the governor announced that the state had set a goal of administering 45,000 vaccinations daily, more than triple the vaccinations it had been performing before.

"We are removing as many impediments as possible to Washingtonians getting vaccinated, we are going to deliver every dose that comes into our state," Inslee said. "We will still be dependent on the federal government for doses, but we are doing everything we can once it gets here."

According to the latest update to the state's COVID-19 data dashboard, the state still has a ways to go: health care providers gave an average 17,618 vaccines daily in the week leading up to Wednesday, Jan 20.

Related stories:

WA Releases Dashboard To Track Vaccine Distribution

Washington Moves Into Next Phase Of Vaccinations