Wednesday, May 12, 2021
Tuesday, May 11, 2021
After the Food and Drug Administration’s emergency use authorization of Pfizer for children 12 to 15 on Monday, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices and CDC are expected to approve and recommend the use of Pfizer to vaccinate those 12 and older on Wednesday.
The Pfizer vaccine is currently available for those ages 16 and older. The Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are authorized for those 18 and older.
“The COVID-19 vaccines are safe, effective and free ‒ and they’re our best shot to end this pandemic and return to the things we’ve missed. We’re moving quickly to empower parents and guardians to get this protection for their children,” said Gov. Doug Ducey. “Millions of Arizonans have already received the COVID-19 vaccine. Soon, kids ages 12 to 15 years old will now be eligible to get vaccinated and state vaccine sites are ready to serve them.”
Arizona has nearly 400,000 youths ages 12 to 15, about 5 percent of Arizona's population. As of Tuesday, 5,383,508 vaccines have been administered in Arizona, with 35% of Arizonans fully vaccinated.
“We’re delighted to be able to welcome these young people to state-run mass-vaccination sites starting Thursday,” said ADHS Director Dr. Cara Christ. “These safe, highly effective, and free vaccines are our best shot at returning to normal, and having more vaccinated individuals gives COVID-19 less of a chance of spreading.”
The University of Arizona POD, as a state site, will vaccinate children 12 to 15 and although it will close on June 25, they had factored the drop in vaccination age into their decommission plan, said Vice President of Communications Holly Jensen.
“We will continue to monitor the numbers, and are ready to adjust if necessary,” said Jensen.
COVID cases remain on a plateau across Arizona.
For the week ending May 2, cases dropped for the first time since the week ending March 21, with 4,946 people testing positive, according to Dr. Joe Gerald, an epidemiologist and professor in the UA Zuckerman College of Public Health who has been tracking the virus for more than a year.
That means an estimated 68 Arizonans per 100,000 residents are testing positive. The state hit a low of 38 cases per 100,000 people on Sept. 8, 2020, between the summer and winter waves, and a low of 54 cases per 100,000 people on March 23 following the winter wave, with cases rising since then.
“Case rates will likely remain ‘stuck’ above the threshold differentiating substantial and moderate risk, 50 cases per 100K residents per week, for the next four to six week owning to more transmissible variants and continued normalization of behaviors,” Gerald wrote in a May 7 report summarizing the latest status of the virus.
Gerald noted that Arizona’s seniors now have the lowest rate of infections, at 26 per 100,000 among residents 65 and older, while the highest rate is among people 15 to 24 years old at 111 per 100,000.
He added that officials estimated 73 people died after contracting COVID in the week ending March 28, making it the first week with fewer than 100 deaths since October. The week ending Oct. 4 saw the fewest number of deaths related to COVID between with summer and winter surges, with 51 deaths.
Mobile vax units at Wheeler Taft Library, Greyhound Park today
Meanwhile, Pima County and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) have launched mobile vaccination units to reach vulnerable communities with high risks of COVID-19 exposure and infection.
Monday, May 10, 2021
Pima County is teaming up with the Northwest YMCA, 7770 N. Shannon Road, to offer a vaccination clinic from 4 to 8 p.m. today, Monday, May 10.
Meanwhile, Pima County and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) have launched mobile vaccination units to reach vulnerable communities with high risks of COVID-19 exposure and infection.
The operation includes two mobile vaccination units that are able to administer 250 vaccines per day each, according to a county press release.
The units will run through June 26, operating at two concurrent locations for three days, with one day to tear down and move to the next location. The locations were selected based on census tract data and the Social Vulnerability Index of the area to identify highly vulnerable communities.
The sites will offer walk-up vaccinations of both the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccine for those 18 and older on a first-come, first-served basis. Vaccinators will return to the same mobile site 28 days after their first visit to receive their second dose, following CDC guidance. Help will be available to all who need assistance with mobility, language or other accommodations.
Here are the planned mobile clinics:
Monday, May 10
- 2900 N. Columbus Blvd, Tucson, 9 a.m. – noon
Northwest YMCA, 7770 N. Shannon Road, Tucson, 4 – 8 p.m.
Tuesday, May 11 - Thursday, May 13
- Greyhound Park, 2601 S. 3rd Ave., 10 a.m. – 8 p.m.
- Wheeler Taft Library, 7800 N. Schisler Drive, 10 a.m. – 8 p.m.,
Rillito Race Track, 4502 N. 1st Ave., 10 a.m. – 8 p.m.
Wednesday, May 12
- Ott Family YMCA, 401 S. Prudence Road, 8 a.m. – noon
- Sun City Oro Valley, 1565 E. Rancho Vistoso Blvd., 1 p.m. - 4 p.m.
At other vaccination sites, Pima County officials are shifting to indoor vaccination sites to avoid making staff and volunteers endure long days in triple-degree temperatures.
Tucson Medical Center has transferred its operations to the Udall Center, 7200 E. Tanque Verde Road. The site is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday, Thursday and Friday and 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday. Register at https://vaccine.tmcaz.com/MyChart/OpenScheduling.
Pima County has opened a new indoor vaccine site at the Kino Event Center, where the county had earlier been doing COVID testing. That site is open 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Saturday. Register at azdhs.gov.
The county has also opened an indoor vaccination POD at El Pueblo Center, 101 W. Irvington Road, which is open Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. No appointment is necessary.
The drive-through POD at Banner-South Kino Stadium, 2500 E. Ajo Way, is now offering appointments between 7:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. but will close permanently on May 14.
Visit pima.gov/covid19vaccine for more details.
The UA vaccination point of distribution is now accepting anyone over the age of 16 who comes in for a shot.
The POD, which is scheduled to close at the end of June, offers a sit-down clinic in the Ina E. Gittings Building (1737 E. University Blvd.) from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.
If you’d rather schedule an appointment, the state is expected to open new first-dose appointments daily at podvaccine.azdhs.gov. Call 602-542-1000 or 844-542-8201 for help in English or Spanish.
If you need help, call the COVID Ambassador Team hotline at 520-848-4045 between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. daily or email [email protected].
CVS pharmacies are now accepting same-day COVID-19 vaccination appointments, and at some locations no appointment is necessary.
About 190 locations in Arizona are taking walk-ins, but appointments are also available within an hour of scheduling.
Walgreens announced it would offer same-day appointments at locations across the country as of this week. Patients can schedule appointments up to 30 minutes before the desired appointment time.
While Walgreens continues to encourage appointments, a Walgreens corporate spokesperson said, walk-ins have and continue to be accepted “if a time slot is available,” across all 8,800 Walgreens stores offering vaccinations.
As of Sunday, May 9, 414,850 people in Pima County had received at least one shot of the virus, accounting for 39.7% of the population. A total of 349,067 people were fully vaccinated.
Get tested: Pima County has free COVID testing
Pima County is continuing to offer a number of testing centers and pop-up testing sites around town, including the northside Ellie Towne Flowing Wells Community Center, 1660 W. Ruthrauff Road. Schedule an appointment at pima.gov/covid19testing.
The University of Arizona’s antibody testing can determine if you have had COVID and now have antibodies. To sign up for testing, visit https://covid19antibodytesting.arizona.edu/home.
Today’s numbers
With 642 new cases reported today, the total number of Arizona’s confirmed novel coronavirus continues to climb to 870,000 as of Monday, May 10, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.
Pima County, which reported 61 new cases today, has seen 115,805 of the state’s 869,472 confirmed cases.
With no new deaths reported this morning, a total of 17,409Arizonans have died after contracting COVID-19, including 2,403 deaths in Pima County, according to the May 10 report.
A total of 565 coronavirus patients were in the hospital as of May 9. That’s roughly 16% of the number hospitalized at the peak of the winter surge, which reached 5,082 on Jan. 12. The summer peak was 3,517, which was set on July 13, 2020. The subsequent lowest number of hospitalized COVID patients was 468, set on Sept. 27, 2020.
A total of 828 people visited emergency rooms with COVID-like symptoms on May 9. That number represents 35% of the record high of 2,341 set on Tuesday, Dec. 29, 2020. That number had peaked during the summer wave at 2,008 on July 7, 2020; it hit a subsequent low of 653 on Sept. 28, 2020.
A total of 182 COVID-19 patients were in intensive care unit beds on May 9, which roughly 15% of the record 1,183 ICU patients set on Jan. 11. The summer’s record number of patients in ICU beds was 970, set on July 13, 2020. The subsequent low was 114 on Sept. 22, 2020.
—with additional reporting from Christina Duran, Jeff Gardner and Mike Truelsen
Friday, May 7, 2021
Pima County officials are hoping they get lucky enough to overcome vaccine hesitancy by setting up mobile vaccination sites at the Desert Diamond and Casino del Sol this weekend.
Pima County and the Federal Emergency Management Agency are teaming up to launch mobile vaccination units this weekend to reach vulnerable communities with high risks of COVID-19 exposure and infection.
The operation includes two mobile vaccination units, able to administer 250 vaccines per day each, along with administrative staff and federal vaccinators with 70 personnel from FEMA, Health and Human Services, the Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Labor, according to a county press release.
The units will run through June 26, operating at two concurrent locations for three days, with one day to tear down and move to the next location. The locations were selected based on census tract data and the Social Vulnerability Index of the area to identify highly vulnerable communities.
The sites will offer walk-up vaccinations of both the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccine for those 18 and older on a first-come, first-served basis. Vaccinators will return to the same mobile site 28 days after their first visit to receive their second dose, following CDC guidance. Help will be available to all who need assistance with mobility, language or other accommodations.
Here are the planned mobile clinics:
Thursday, May 6, 2021
CVS pharmacies are now accepting same-day COVID-19 vaccination appointments, and at some locations no appointment is necessary.
About 190 locations in Arizona are taking walk-ins, but appointments are also available within an hour of scheduling.
“We continue to orchestrate an all-out effort to vaccinate the nation against COVID-19,” said CVS Health President and CEO Karen S. Lynch. “Thanks to the dedication and effort of our colleagues, I am proud to say we helped achieve the President’s accelerated 100-day goal of 200 million vaccines and have administered over 17 million COVID-19 vaccine doses to date. Our customers continue to give us high satisfaction scores based on their interactions with colleagues and our customer-centric digital approach for scheduling appointments.”
CVS has administered more than 17 million COVID-19 vaccine doses nationwide through the Pharmacy Partnership for Long-Term Care Program and Federal Retail Pharmacy Program as of May 5. CVS locations boast a more than 90% second-dose compliance rate.
Walgreens announced it would offer same-day appointments at locations across the country as of yesterday. Patients can schedule appointments up to 30 minutes before the desired appointment time.
While Walgreens continues to encourage appointments, a Walgreens corporate spokesperson said, walk-ins have and continue to be accepted “if a time slot is available,” across all 8,800 Walgreens stores offering vaccinations.
The announcement by CVS comes after the state announced on April 27 that it would allow no-appointment walk-ins at state PODs. Pima County offers no-appointment walk-ins at its mobile clinics and some large vaccination sites, including El Pueblo Center on Irvington Road.
Wednesday, May 5, 2021
CVS pharmacies are now accepting same-day COVID-19 vaccination appointments, and at some locations no appointment is necessary.
About 190 locations in Arizona are taking walk-ins, but appointments are also available within an hour of scheduling.
“We continue to orchestrate an all-out effort to vaccinate the nation against COVID-19,” said CVS Health President and CEO Karen S. Lynch. “Thanks to the dedication and effort of our colleagues, I am proud to say we helped achieve the President’s accelerated 100-day goal of 200 million vaccines and have administered over 17 million COVID-19 vaccine doses to date. Our customers continue to give us high satisfaction scores based on their interactions with colleagues and our customer-centric digital approach for scheduling appointments.”
CVS has administered more than 17 million COVID-19 vaccine doses nationwide through the Pharmacy Partnership for Long-Term Care Program and Federal Retail Pharmacy Program as of May 5. CVS locations boast a more than 90% second-dose compliance rate.
Walgreens announced it would offer same-day appointments at locations across the country as of today. Patients can schedule appointments up to 30 minutes before the desired appointment time.
While Walgreens continues to encourage appointments, a Walgreens corporate spokesperson said, walk-ins have and continue to be accepted “if a time slot is available,” across all 8,800 Walgreens stores offering vaccinations.
Tuesday, May 4, 2021
The University of Arizona plans to decommission its vaccination site as of June 25 and has announced new hours.
With the decline in vaccine demand and “as other avenues for vaccination become more readily available,” the UA POD plans to scale back its hours and on Monday transitioned to fully indoors at the Ina E. Gittings Building, closing the drive-thru as the days get hotter, announced UA President Robert C. Robbins at the university update on Monday morning.
At the start of next week the UA POD will shorten its hours to 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., then on June 1 will continue with new hours only offering second doses.
“We're going to stop taking first dose appointments, relatively soon, just to make sure that the second dose is booked here at the University of Arizona POD, so that we will finish all shots that we started here,” said Vice President of Communications Holly Jensen. More details here.
County launching mobile vax pods
As health officials work to overcome vaccine hesitancy among some members of the public, Pima County and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) are teaming up to launch mobile vaccination units to reach vulnerable communities with high risks of COVID-19 exposure and infection.
The operation includes two mobile vaccination units (MVUs), able to administer 250 vaccines per day each, along with administrative staff and federal vaccinators with 70 personnel from FEMA, Health and Human Services, the Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Labor, according to a county press release.
