SM County: Federal Retail Pharmacy Program & Covid Vaccine Eligibility

16 Feb SM County: Federal Retail Pharmacy Program & Covid Vaccine Eligibility

San Miguel County Public Health puts out the word that the Federal government has partnered with pharmacies to increase access to vaccines.

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As vaccine supply to the United States is expected to increase in the coming months, the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program for COVID-19 Vaccinations is increasing access to vaccines for those eligible throughout the United States.

Retail pharmacies participating in the program will vary by state and territory. In Colorado, participating retail pharmacies include The Kroger Company, which owns City Market, and Walmart, Inc, which owns Sam’s Club. Eligible individuals interested in getting vaccinated at their local retail pharmacy should contact the pharmacy directly for appointment availability.

“This is an incredible opportunity to increase health equity and access to vaccines throughout the county,” said Public Health Director Grace Franklin. “Additional avenues for vaccine distribution can only help in our efforts to vaccinate our eligible population because supply from the state to our existing distribution centers is limited.”

At present, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) has established eligibility for residents qualifying within Phases 1A through 1B.2. This includes frontline healthcare workers, educators and school staff, residents 65 years of age and older. Phase 1B.3 is expected to begin in March according to Governor Jared Polis.

San Miguel County Public Health, Telluride Regional Medical Center and Uncompahgre Medical Center are the vaccine distribution centers within San Miguel County. Based on supply, eligible residents can reach out to their primary care physician, employer or visit the county’s COVID-19 vaccine tab in order to preregister.

Due to high demand, COVID vaccine scheduling for a variety of retail pharmacies can experience intermittent issues, if issues arise during scheduling, reach out to the retail pharmacy directly.

To schedule an appointment with an approved City Market retail pharmacy, please visit https://www.citymarket.com/rx/guest/vaccination-appointments.

To schedule an appointment with an approved Walmart retail pharmacy, please visit www.walmart.com/COVIDvaccine.

To schedule an appointment with an approved Sam’s Club retail pharmacy, please visit www.samsclub.com/covid.

Public Health has confirmed 15 new positive cases of COVID-19 from test results received from February 12 through 16. Of these cases, 12 are confirmed as residents and all actively contagious cases are currently in isolation.

As of release time today, there have been 800 total COVID cases among residents to date with 22 active cases.

While case numbers are seeing a decline at present, the coming two weeks are critical to sustained decline as we curb the spread from Super Bowl gatherings and the Presidents Day holiday. Maintaining current policy levels will help San Miguel County continue the downward trend and sustainably reopen in the coming weeks.

To learn more about the county’s current COVID-19 metrics, please visit the County COVID-19 dashboard.

Five Commitments of Containment:

Wear a mask
Maintain six feet of physical distance
Minimize group size
Wash hands frequently
Stay home when sick and get tested