Special to The Dallas Examiner
Mayor Eric Johnson on Friday announced that the state of Texas will directly provide the city of Dallas with 5,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine this week for public distribution.
The city has previously only received doses to inoculate its public safety workers. Mayor Johnson, the City of Dallas Emergency Management Director under state law and city code, has advocated in recent weeks for state officials to allow the city to directly distribute vaccine doses. Currently, the city is partnered with Dallas County to distribute the county’s doses at Fair Park.
“I am excited and ready to get these highly effective, life-saving vaccines to the public,” Johnson said. “As I have said, the city of Dallas is ready to help the state take its vaccination efforts to the next level. We will do so equitably, efficiently and without political influence.”
The vaccines will be distributed in an appointment-based drive-up process at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center, although the Office of Emergency Management is also assessing other sites for future vaccine distributions. The convention center was previously used to give out 2,000 doses of the vaccine to Dallas police and firefighters.
The city of Dallas will pull the names of eligible residents from the existing Dallas County Health and Human Services registration database. The residents will be prioritized based on recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Department of State Health Services, and Dallas County Health and Human Services.
The eligible residents will be contacted by the city of Dallas to schedule an appointment time at the convention center. The Office of Emergency Management plans to make the site available weekdays from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., and one weekend day, depending on availability.
Once at the site, the check-in process will include information gathering on demographics and the residents’ ZIP codes. Those vaccinated will also be provided with information about receiving a second dose at a future date.
Dallas Fire-Rescue paramedics will administer the vaccine doses. Those who receive the vaccine will be sent to an area to be briefly monitored for adverse reactions to the vaccine, which are rare.