Posted on January 27, 2021 at 11:59 AM by Heather Smith
As Loudoun County and Virginia health officials work to refine the COVID-19 vaccination effort, here are key points to keep in mind about vaccine availability and distribution in Loudoun County.
Current Status of Vaccine Distribution
- Loudoun and the rest of Virginia are now in Phase 1b of vaccine eligibility, which means that about 50% of the state’s population is now eligible for vaccination. However, there are not enough doses available yet for everyone who is eligible to receive them. At our current supply rate, it will take months—at least until March or April—for Virginia to meet the demand for Phase 1b vaccinations.
How Vaccine is Distributed
- Loudoun County’s vaccine supply comes from the Virginia Department of Health, which allocates doses to local health districts, such as Loudoun, based on each district’s population. Virginia, like all states, gets vaccine doses from the federal government. You can keep track of doses administered in Loudoun through the Virginia Department of Health’s COVID-19 Vaccine Summary Dashboard, which is updated daily. Data entry sometimes lags; therefore, the data summary may not show the actual number of vaccine doses administered in real time.
How to Sign Up for Vaccine
- Currently, vaccinations are being distributed by the Loudoun County Health Department by appointment only. If you are eligible to be vaccinated and your employer has not made arrangements for vaccination, you may submit an online pre-screening survey to the Loudoun Health Department. Employers can sign up using this same survey by selecting “organization” when prompted. This is the fastest and most efficient method to obtain an appointment for a COVID-19 vaccine. People who do not have access to the internet may call us at 703-737-8300.
If You've Submitted a Request for Vaccine
- If you are seeking a vaccination appointment and have submitted your information to the Loudoun County Health Department through the online pre-screening survey or by phone, please be patient. It may be weeks or longer before vaccination appointments become available for those who have registered. You will contacted by email or phone when it is your turn for an appointment.
Second Dose Appointments
- While vaccine supply continues to remain very limited, we anticipate we will receive enough doses each week to provide second doses to those who are eligible. The second dose should be administered as close to the recommended interval as possible. However, if it is not feasible to adhere to the recommended interval, the second doses may be scheduled for administration up to six weeks (42 days) after the first dose, according to new CDC guidance.
- If you scheduled your appointment online:
- Please wait at least three business days from your first dose appointment to allow the online system to register your first dose.
- Log in to the vaccine scheduling system you used to schedule your first appointment to schedule your second dose appointment.
- Select 'Second Dose Clinic.'
- If you do not see an available appointment, please be patient and check back.
- If you scheduled your appointment by phone and you did not schedule your second dose at the clinic on the day of your first dose:
- The Loudoun County Health Department will be contacting you by phone to schedule your second dose appointment.
- Please be patient and we will reach out to you as we open additional appointments for second doses.
New Vaccine Distribution Site Coming Soon
- The Loudoun County Board of Supervisors has approved for the county to enter a lease arrangement to operate a large, full-scale COVID-19 vaccination point of dispensing, or pod, at a large site in the eastern portion of the county. The vaccination site is expected to open for only people who have an appointment beginning in February. Once open, appointments will still be required via the process outlined above. The site will have the capacity to facilitate more doses than we can currently; however, the Health Department’s ability to administer vaccine will still be dependent on doses received.
Stay Informed
- Additional information about the ongoing vaccination efforts will be published by the county as it becomes available. You can find up-to-date information at loudoun.gov/covid19vaccine. You can also sign up to receive text or email updates about COVID-19 from Loudoun County:
Continue Taking COVID-19 Precautions
- As we wait for the supply of COVID-19 vaccine to catch up to demand, it is more important than ever to continue to follow all current guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to protect yourself and your family against COVID-19, such as staying home when possible, wearing face masks when out, maintaining 6 feet of physical distance from others, washing hands frequently or using hand sanitizer with at least 60 percent alcohol.
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