A few of the most commonly asked questions are “how do I get on a list”, “when can I get vaccinated”, and “why should I get vaccinated”?
How do I get on a list for the vaccine or when can I get vaccinated?
There is currently not a waitlist for our residents to sign up to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. The first group to be vaccinated in phase 1a includes health care workers and long-term care residents. Since this phase is based on employment and place of residence, people in this category will be contacted by their employer or the facility where they live, notifying them when the vaccine is available.
As we obtain more vaccine, we will offer doses to broader categories of residents, including those age 65 and older, based on updated guidance from the federal government. Minnesota is still working with the extremely limited supply of vaccine allocated each week from the federal government. The reality is that we have far more residents eligible for getting the vaccine than we have doses available. We will provide updates to the public as more vaccine becomes available and when we are able to start vaccinating individuals in the next priority groups.
Why is getting vaccinated important?
Getting vaccinated against COVID-19 will be one of the best ways to protect yourself and the people around you. The more people vaccinated means there will be less disease in our communities and by stopping the spread of COVID-19, we can keep businesses, schools, and other venues open. Stopping the spread of COVID-19 gets us closer to the end of the pandemic.
Learn more by visiting the Polk County Coronavirus Response Hub (https://coronavirus-response-pcg.hub.arcgis.com/ ), the Norman County COVID-19 website (www.co.norman.mn.us/covid ) the Minnesota Department of Health (https://www.health.state.mn.us/ ) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (https://www.cdc.gov/ ) websites for more COVID-19 information. Follow Polk County Public Health and Norman-Mahnomen Public Health on social media for local updates.
