photo by: Ashley Golledge

Ed Rosales administers a vaccine at Douglas County's COVID-19 clinic at the Douglas County Fairgrounds on Wednesday, March 31, 2021.

Data from four local health organizations showed that more than 40,000 first doses of COVID-19 vaccine had been administered in Douglas County as of Thursday.

Altogether, data from the four distributors — LMH Health, Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health, Heartland Community Health Center and Haskell Indian Health Center — showed that 40,188 first doses and 23,200 second doses of COVID-19 vaccine had been administered. That’s an increase of 5,087 first doses and 2,170 second doses since the county last reported vaccine distribution information to the Journal-World on March 25.

The most recent vaccine distribution data shows that the four aforementioned organizations have administered 40,188 of the 46,065 first doses they have received, or around 87.2%. The four organizations have also administered 23,200 of the 32,095 second doses they have received, or around 72.3%.

With both first and second doses, those four Douglas County organizations had administered 63,388 total doses as of Thursday. That’s an increase of 7,257 doses since data was last reported on March 25.

In Kansas, the vaccine is currently available to people in Phases 1 through 5, meaning everyone 16 and older is eligible for the vaccine. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Moderna and Johnson and Johnson vaccines are recommended for those 18 and older. The Pfizer vaccine is recommended for those 16 and older.

Despite the vaccine being available to all, Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health has been prioritizing those in Phases 1 through 4 and will continue to do so until the week of April 12, when the health department plans to reevaluate its progress and determine allocations for those in Phase 5.

Phase 1 includes health care workers, residents or patients in long-term care, senior housing or independent living and workers critical to pandemic response continuity. Phase 2 includes people 65 and older, people who live in congregate settings and high-contact critical workers. Those newly eligible as part of Phases 3 and 4 include people 16 to 64 years old who have various health conditions, including cancer, Down syndrome, certain heart conditions, diabetes, pregnancy, asthma and a few other conditions. Phases 3 and 4 also include people who work in the following occupations: agricultural and food workers; workers performing in-person activities indoors; utility workers; social service and government workers; truck drivers and logistics workers; water and wastewater workers; shelter, housing and finance workers; and information technology and communication workers.

To be added to the waiting list for Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health’s vaccination clinics, you can fill out the county’s vaccine interest form at dgcoks.org/vaccineinterestform.

Other organizations in Douglas County besides LMH Health, Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health, Heartland Community Health Center and Haskell Indian Health Center are administering vaccines. The Journal-World published a list of other vaccine distributors earlier this week. The list includes AuBurn Pharmacies in Baldwin City and Eudora, CVS, Dillons, Hy-Vee, Medical Arts Pharmacy, Orchards Drug, Sigler Pharmacy, Walgreens and Walmart.

People who have questions about the COVID-19 or the vaccination process can call the county’s COVID hotline at 785-864-9000 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.