DOH Leon Provides Week 10 Update on Vaccination Efforts 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, February 25, 2021

 Florida Department of Health in Leon County Provides Week 10 Updates on Vaccination Efforts

Tallahassee, FL--- The Department of Health in Leon County (DOH Leon) in partnership with the Florida Department of Health, the Florida Division of Emergency Management, and other key community partners,  continues to administer  COVID-19 vaccinations as effectively and equitably as we possibly can with limited supply. This, as we continue all our responses related to limiting the spread of the virus and protecting public health.

Today we provide Week 10 updates on vaccination efforts in Leon County as of February 24.

DOH Leon Vaccination Clinic Highlights:

We have administered more than 15,922 doses through our health department to date.

We have had 18 DOH Leon sponsored vaccination clinics.

Our actions are in accordance with the Governor’s executive order to offer the COVID-19 vaccine to all individuals 65 years of age and older, as well as frontline health care workers.

Since the COVID-19 vaccine rollout began in late December Leon County has administered a total of 69,107 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. 43,311 people have been vaccinated. 25,796 individuals in the county have completed their vaccine series and are now fully immunized against COVID-19.

DOH Leon vaccine transfers for the week ending 2/27/21: Moderna and Pfizer vaccines reallocated to partners including: Bethel Missionary Baptist Church, Florida A & M University, Florida State University, Gadsden County Health Department, and Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare. 

DOH Leon has begun administering vaccines to residents who received appointments through the statewide preregistration system.  Eligible seniors can start the process by visiting https://myvaccine.fl.gov/. The system will notify those who are eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine when appointments are available by text, email, or phone call.  Those without internet access can call 866-200-3856.  For those requiring TTY access, the phone number is 833-476-1455. The vaccine registration website has been expanded to Spanish and Haitian Creole.

DOH Leon vaccination clinics operate from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Clinics are by appointment only and a government-issued photo ID is required. The schedule is subject to change based on vaccine supply and inclement weather. Vaccination clinics are held at:

            DOH Leon Administration Building

            2965 Municipal Way

            Tallahassee, FL  32304

Vaccine access continues to increase. Bethel Missionary Baptist Church in Tallahassee successfully hosted its first COVID-19 vaccine clinic last week at its Family Life Center on February 20. 500 doses of vaccine were administered to eligible church members as well as to the community. A second dose clinic is scheduled for March 20. This effort is part of an initiative from Governor DeSantis, who has tasked the Florida Division of Emergency Management and the Florida Department of Health with identifying places of worship and other locations in underserved and vulnerable communities where the COVID-19 vaccine may be administered.

Florida A & M University hosts a COVID-19 vaccination site at the Al Lawson Center.  The site will administer vaccines seven days a week starting Thursday, February 25.  It will be supported by the Florida Division of Emergency Management and the Florida Department of Health.  Its vaccine team will be able to administer up to 200 doses daily to people who are eligible at the community-based site. The clinic will operate from 9 a.m. to noon.

Community partners offer rides to seniors with appointments to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Leon County, through agency partners part of the Big Bend Community Organizations Active in Disaster (Big Bend COAD), will help coordinate transportation to get seniors to those crucial appointments. Any Leon County senior unable to secure transportation should contact VolunteerLEON at (850) 606-1970 to receive a referral to a faith-based organization for a volunteer driver. Anyone seeking assistance should have already tried to secure transportation through family and friends and must have a vaccination appointment scheduled at an upcoming clinic.

Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare continues its series “State of COVID-19 in Leon County Community Update” at noon this Friday, February 26. This virtual chat collectively brings together key community leaders for an open conversation about COVID-19. This Friday, the panel continues conversations around the COVID-19 vaccine and will include questions about the rollout; eligibility; and the vaccine itself. Registration and more information are available at: TMH.ORG/CovidTalk

DOH Leon continues to see improvement in most of our COVID-19 metrics. COVID-19 hospitalization and infection rates continue to decline. So far this week, (2/21-2/27), we have decreased from a 4.87% to a 4.49% positivity rate. Our seven-day rolling average of new cases has decreased to 67 a day. We are continuing to see a decrease in the average number of new cases since the holiday surge, including a significant decrease in cases of seniors in the 65 and over age group (two week rolling average 12/26/20-2/20/21: 12% to 4.8%). Sadly, we have lost 277 Leon County residents. Find more data and summary information specific to Leon County here.  Additionally, there have been no new confirmed cases of the UK COVID-19 variant in Leon County.  We stand at three cases of the B117 variant. Data suggest this variant may be more contagious than the original virus but does not suggest that it causes more severe disease. Current COVID-19 vaccines are expected to be effective against this and other mutations.

The Florida Department of Health issues a COVID-19 vaccine report that is updated daily.  This report includes information on the COVID-19 vaccine by county, race, sex, and age. The site also includes all available resources that we have on the state vaccination plan. Find the COVID-19 vaccine report here: https://floridahealthcovid19.gov/

 For any additional questions about the vaccine at this time, the State COVID-19 Call Center can be reached by calling 1-866-779-6121 or emailing COVID-19@flhealth.gov  and is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

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Media Contact:

Pamela Saulsby | Public Information Officer

Pamela.saulsby@flhealth.gov