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Detroit Expands COVID-19 Vaccine Eligibility To Residents 65 And Up

(CBS DETROIT) - Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan announced Thursday any Detroit resident age 65 or older can call to schedule an appointment to receive the COVID-19 vaccine at the TCF Center.

"I am deeply appreciative to Gov. Whitmer's and President Biden's administration for committing to a near tripling of our vaccine shipments," Duggan said.

Over the next four weeks, the city currently currently has 10,000 Detroiters scheduled, Duggan said.

"These extra doses will allow us to open up appointments to thousands more who have been waiting for the opportunity to be vaccinated," the mayor added.

Here's the full list of eligible individuals now includes:

  • Any resident of the City of Detroit who is age 65 or older (Updated)
  • That means anyone born in 1955 or earlier
  • K-12 teachers and support staff and day care workers
  • S. Post Office Employees who live or work in Detroit
  • Employees of the City of Detroit or city-related agencies who are working from their regular job site (Employees working from home are not eligible at this time)
  • State and Federal Law enforcement working in Detroit
  • Members of the Clergy interacting with members of their congregation
  • Funeral Home/mortuary employees working in Detroit
  • (NEW) Paid and unpaid persons in health care settings who have the potential for direct or indirect exposure to patients or infectious materials working in Detroit

Initially, access to vaccinations in Detroit for residents was limited to those ages 75 or older.

However, the current call volume for scheduling requests is allowing the Mayor to lower the threshold for a third time to those 65 years of age or older, which is the youngest possible under the current state guidelines.

Health Department expands on-site vaccinations

Part of the city's additional allotment will be used to expand the Health Department's efforts to vaccinate the city's most vulnerable populations by visiting homeless shelters and senior citizen buildings.

Currently, the city's allotment of vaccines has allowed Health Department staff to visit two facilities per day to vaccinate about 560 people per week.  With the increased allotment, the Health Department will be able to visit three to four facilities per day (depending on size) and vaccinate up to 1,000 residents and staff per week.

The Health Department also will start visiting other congregate settings operated by the Detroit Wayne Integrated Health Network (DWIHN), such as mental health facilities, substance abuse recovery centers and other supportive housing units.

Public Dashboard tracks doses, vaccinations

As of Thursday, the city has scheduled 18,450 vaccine doses and as of the end of the day Wednesday had administered 80.9% or them, or 14.933.

That includes more than 5,700 residents over the age of 68 and "Good Neighbor" drivers, 2,000 health care providers, 2,000 first responders, 2,500 teachers and school staff, and other eligible individuals.  Daily updated numbers are now available on a public dashboard accessible at www.detroitmi.gov/health.

How to schedule an appointment

Eligible residents can call 313-230-0505 between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m., Monday-Friday to make an appointment.

As of Wednesday, the average wait time for callers who made it through the initial prompts to determine their eligibility was about 15 minutes.  Detailed information on the TCF testing site is available at www.detroitmi.gov.

As additional independent vaccination sites at pharmacies and elsewhere come online in the city, a map of locations will be added to the website.

For more information visit here. 

Press Conference 1/28/21

Mayor Duggan will announce the significant expansion of COVID-19 vaccination eligibility beginning next week thanks to expanded capacity. The Mayor will also share how the TCF Center team plans to make adjustments to accommodate the increased volume of residents seeking vaccination appointments. Representatives from Project Clean Slate will join the Mayor to kick-off an effort to help thousands of newly eligible Detroiters seeking criminals record expungement, thanks to record-clearing legislation signed into law by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in October 2020. * Mayor Mike Duggan * Denise Fair, Chief Public Health Officer * Deputy Chief of Staff Elisa Malile * Councilmember Janeé L. Ayers * Assistant Chief of Police Todd Bettison * Project Clean Slate Clients

Posted by City of Detroit Government on Thursday, January 28, 2021

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