In a Covid-19 update issued Monday, March 15, County Executive Angela Alsobrooks announced that the county was inviting pre-registration to those eligible in Phase 1C. She also urges those in Phase 1B who have not yet been immunized to pre-register. Phase 1C includes adults 65 to 74 years of age and also several categories of those receiving hospital in-or-out-patient medical care, and workers who are both essential and at high risk of exposure, including grocery store and postal service workers. A complete list of eligible groups of people in Phase 1C is available on the State of Maryland Covid-19 information site at coronavirus.maryland.gov/pages/vaccine#access.
Phase 1C has been eligible to receive vaccines since mid-February by state mandate, but the health department has focused on 1A and 1B and the shots for which pre-registration is invited are only those dispensed by the Prince George’s County Health Department. The pre-registration form can be found at https://covid19vaccination.princegeorgescountymd.gov/.
Those without internet access can call the Maryland GoVAX Covid-19 Vaccination Support Center at 1-855-MDGOVAX (1-855-634-6829) from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week for information. There is an automated menu (“Press 1 for English, 2 for Spanish,” for example) that requires entry of the caller’s five-digit zip code and makes repeated attempts to divert callers to the website. With persistence, callers can reach a human being who will assist with the pre-registration and appointment process and answer any questions.
Those seeking vaccination can still attempt to sign up at pharmacies and hospital centers.
The Health Department currently operates five vaccination clinics: Cedar Heights Community Center in Seat Pleasant, Cheverly Health Center in Cheverly, Kentland Community Center in Landover, Laurel-Beltsville Senior Activity Center in Laurel, Southern Regional Technology and Recreation Center in Fort Washington and the Sports and Learning Complex in Landover. This last site in Landover is temporarily closed through Sunday, March 28.
Alsobrooks cites the increasing rate of vaccinations in the county as part of the rationale to open up the health department’s facilities to Phase 1C. In the county overall, however, many in the 1C category are in the process or have completed being vaccinated via the other modes of distribution for which they were already eligible – pharmacies, Kaiser Permanente, state mass vaccination sites, Luminis and the Maryland Medical System and other hospitals. Of the dose allocation in weeks 1 to 12 of the rollout, only just under one-third has gone to the county health clinics.