COVID-19 Vaccinations Begin For Eligible 1b Populations The Week Of Jan. 11

Press release from the City of Fairfax:

01/11/2021

Fairfax Health District Health Department vaccine hotline: 703-324-7404
(9 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays • 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekends)

The Virginia Department of Health announced that select health districts in Virginia, including the Fairfax Health District, will begin vaccinating priority group 1b the week of January 11. This includes:

• adults age 75 and older
• people living in correctional facilities, homeless shelters, and migrant labor camps; and
• frontline essential workers.

Frontline essential workers are in sectors essential to the functioning of society and are at substantially higher risk of exposure to COVID-19 because they cannot work remotely. Frontline essential workers include police, fire, hazmat; corrections and homeless shelter workers; childcare/k-12 teachers/staff; food and agriculture; manufacturing; grocery store workers; public transit workers; mail carriers; and officials needed to maintain continuity of government.

The Fairfax County Health Department has begun scheduling appointments for eligible persons in the Phase 1b group. Vaccinations for the 1a group, which have been ongoing for weeks, will continue as well.

Older Adults

For adults age 75 and older, call the Health Department’s vaccine hotline at 703-324-7404 (9 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays, 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekends) to register for an appointment.

Visit the Fairfax County Health Department webpage for more details, including the option of using an online form to schedule appointments. The ability to schedule appointments will depend on the supply of vaccine available. (Fairfax City is served by the Fairfax County Health Department, and is part of the Fairfax Health District.)

Frontline Essential Workers

Vaccine supply in the United States is still very limited and is expected to increase gradually over the next months. Because there is not sufficient supply to vaccinate everyone in Phase 1b at the same time, frontline essential workers will be vaccinated in the following order:

1. Police, fire, and hazmat
2. Corrections and homeless shelter workers
3. Childcare/K-12 teachers/staff
4. Food and agriculture
5. Manufacturing
6. Grocery store workers
7. Public transit workers
8. Mail carriers (USPS and private)
9. Officials needed to maintain continuity of government.

Beginning Monday, January 11, closed vaccination clinics for police, fire and hazmat, corrections and homeless shelter workers will be conducted by the Health Department. There will be no need for individuals working in these sectors to contact the Health Department to schedule appointments.

Dates for the other Phase 1b frontline essential worker categories will be announced in the future. More details will be available on the Health Department webpage.

People Living in Correctional Facilities and Homeless Shelters

Beginning Monday, January 11, closed vaccination clinics for residents of correctional facilities and homeless shelters will be conducted by the Health Department. There will be no need for individuals working or living in these facilities to contact the Health Department to schedule appointments.

For more information and the latest details, view our COVID-19 Vaccine Webpage.

Stay Informed

• Call the Fairfax County Health Department Call Center at 703-267-3511 with Coronavirus questions; open 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays and 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends.
• Text FFXCOVID to 888777 to receive updates from Fairfax County about COVID-19; text FFXCOVIDESP to 888777 for updates in Spanish.
• Email questions or concerns to ffxcovid@fairfaxcounty.gov. This email account will be staffed Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. through 6 p.m.
• Visit a web portal for coronavirus that serves as a one-stop online resource for information.
• Learn more about COVID-19 on the Health Department Coronavirus (COVID-19) Webpage or FAQ page.
• Follow the Fairfax County Government Facebook Page and Health Department Facebook Page.
• Follow @fairfaxcounty and @fairfaxhealth on Twitter.

This press release was produced by the City of Fairfax. The views expressed here are the author’s own.