Loudoun County Starts Phase 1b Of COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution

ASHBURN, VA — The second level of coronavirus vaccine distribution will begin Monday in several areas of Virginia, including Loudoun County, as state health officials begin Phase 1b of Gov. Ralph Northam’s plan to get more residents vaccinated as confirmed cases of the virus continue to surge.

County officials said Monday that they are working with community partners including pharmacies, health care systems, schools are employers to help people understand who is eligible to be vaccinated under Phase 1b and where to go to get vaccinated.

The new phase of the vaccine distribution will begin as Phase 1a continues, which includes healthcare professionals and people living in long-term care facilities. Under Phase 1b, police officers, firefighters, teachers, food and agricultural workers, manufacturing employees, grocery store employees, public transit workers, mail carriers and officials working in essential government services are eligible to receive the vaccine.

“We know that our essential workers and older adults are eager to get vaccinated, and we are eager to facilitate vaccination for as many people as possible in the weeks ahead,” Loudoun County Health Director Dr. David Goodfriend said Monday in a news release. “Right now, we are asking those who are next in line to get vaccinated—those in Phase 1b—to contact their employer or the Health Department for information about how to receive vaccine.”

The beginning of Phase 1b begins a day after a record number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus was set Saturday. State health officials announced Sunday that 5,798 people across Virginia tested positive, which was 400 more cases that the record-number of residents who tested positive Friday and this past Wednesday.

Residents who are 75 years and older are also included in Phase 1b because of the higher risk they face in testing positive for the coronavirus. As supplies of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines become available, local health officials expect an overlap of the Phase 1b group will occur to ensure that people in the group are vaccinated as quickly and efficiently as possible.

Initially, the Loudoun County Health Department will be coordinating or providing vaccinations, officials said Monday. As the process moves ahead, vaccine will become increasingly available through people’s health care providers and local pharmacies and as a result, Loudoun County ultimately will not be the primary provider of COVID-19 vaccine.

Local officials also put these steps in place to allow people to understand how and where they can go to receive the vaccine.

• Send an email that includes your name, organization and basis for inclusion in Phase 1a or 1b to health@loudoun.gov, which is the most efficient way to contact the Health Department;

Or

• If you do not have access to email, you may call Loudoun County’s COVID-19 information line at (703) 737-8300 between 8:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.

Sign Up to Receive Alerts

Additional information about the ongoing vaccination efforts will be published as it becomes available. To stay informed about when it is your turn to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, residents should sign up to receive text or email updates about COVID-19 from Loudoun County:

• Text LCCOVID19 to 888777 to receive text alerts in English.
• Text LCCOVIDESP to 888777 to receive text alerts in Spanish.
• Sign up for email and text updates on COVID-19 in Notify Me, Blogs category, “Coronavirus (COVID-19).”
• · Follow Loudoun County on Facebook and Twitter.
• Visit the county’s website, loudoun.gov/coronavirus.