Vaccine Shortage Hits Home: Trump Administration Fails To Fulfill Orders: On Jan.15, outgoing federal officials notified the Virginia Department of Health (the agency overseeing the Prince William Health District) that its pending vaccine order would not be filled. As we have since learned, the “stockpile” touted by U.S. Health & Human Services Secretary Alex Azar does not exist, leaving health departments across the nation scrambling to meet local vaccine demand. Our Health District has enough vaccine on hand for existing appointments, which are booked through Feb. 15.
New Waitlist Open to Select Groups: There is a now a unified waitlist for qualifying residents of the three jurisdictions served by the Prince William Health District (PWHD): Prince William County, Manassas City, and Manassas Park. It is currently only open to people who are in group 1A, are age 65+ or have select underlying conditions. (Find your group here.) Other residents should monitor local media and the VDH website for updates when additional groups become eligible to register. Supervisor Boddye will continue to share news as well.
Click here to start the form, which has a series of questions to determine eligibility. Those who meet the criteria can join the list, and will be contacted once appointments become available, based on the order in which they filled out the form. Joining the waitlist does not automatically schedule you for an appointment. The Health District will reach out when new appointments become available, which may take several weeks. President Biden has an announced that he will invoke the Defense Production Act as part of his vaccine distribution plan, which will hopefully restart the distribution process.
A separate response is required for each individual wishing to join the waitlist. For example, a husband and wife living in the same household must each submit this form separately with their own name and date of birth. It is fine to use the same email or phone number for multiple registrations, if a family does not have individual addresses or numbers.
Waitlist Registration Also Available by Phone: Those who meet the eligibility criteria but do not have access to the internet or email may contact the Prince William Health District Call Center at 703-872-7759, 9am – 4:30pm Monday through Sunday, to be added to the waitlist by phone. Call center agents cannot make appointments. They are merely entering information into the online form for individuals who cannot access the form on their own.
New Scheduling Software Launching in February: Next month Virginia will launch its own “PrepMod” vaccine clinic and registration management system. It is expected to offer more efficiency for the health district, as well as the end-user, than the federal VAMS system currently in use. The new system will allow residents to pre-fill forms online, minimizing the amount of time spent at the clinic. It will also enable appointment registration and reminders.
George Mason University Clinic Opens: In order to administer more vaccinations in a space that allows for adequate distancing, the Prince William Health District’s vaccination clinic has moved to the Prince William Campus of George Mason University (GMU). It is open by appointment only. PWHD is not currently able to accept new appointments. Those age 65 and older, or 16 and over with certain underlying conditions, may add themselves to a waitlist. The incoming federal administration has vowed to prioritize vaccine distribution. PWHD will contact waitlisted individuals when they receive additional doses.