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THE County is reserving a portion of available COVID-19 vaccination appointments each day for a pilot project that aims to equitably distribute the novel coronavirus vaccine.
Project SAVE (Scheduling Assistance for Vaccine Equity) sets aside appointments for people who are in the currently eligible groups and at high risk for complications from COVID-19.
“We need to make sure that communities that have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 have easier access to the vaccine,” said Wilma Wooten, M.D., M.P.H., County public health officer. “This project is making it easier for people who qualify to make appointments and get vaccinated.”
The pilot program is now operating in the southern region of the county and is managed by nine community groups who have access to reserve appointments at four vaccination sites. The sites are:
• South Region Live Well Center – Chula Vista
• Martin Luther King Community Center – National City
• Mar Vista High School – Imperial Beach
• Southwestern College – San Ysidro.
The reserved appointments will be filled through outreach by community health workers or promotoras who are contacting people 65 and older at locations that include grocery stores, faith centers, food distribution sites and housing complexes in the South Bay.
Rescheduled appointments
Due to delays in vaccine shipments to San Diego, the County is rescheduling approximately 1,000 first-dose appointments at its sites. Those affected are being notified they will be rescheduled for next week.
Additional vaccine information
The Metropolitan Transit System is offering free rides to people with proof of a vaccination appointment and 2-1-1 San Diego and promotoras also have the capacity to arrange for transportation.
Currently, all County vaccination super stations and points of dispensing, or PODs, are vaccinating people in Phase 1A and people 65 years and older in Phase 1B. All require appointments which can be made at vaccinationsuperstationsd.com.
To date, more than 765,000 COVID-19 doses have been delivered to the region. Of those, over 663,000 have been administered, including more than 135,000 San Diegans who have received two doses and are fully vaccinated. So far, 17.6% of the population over age 16 has received at least one dose. More information about vaccine distribution can be found on the County’s vaccination dashboard.
State metrics
San Diego County’s state-calculated, adjusted case rate is currently 22.2 cases per 100,000 residents and the region is in Purple Tier or Tier 1.
The testing positivity percentage is 6.4%, placing the County in Tier 2 or the Red Tier.
While the testing positivity rate for the County qualifies it for the Red Tier, the state uses the most restrictive metric – in this case the adjusted case rate – and assigns counties to that tier. Therefore, the County remains in the Purple Tier or Tier 1.
The County’s health equity metric, which looks at the testing positivity for areas with the lowest healthy conditions, is 9.7% and it’s in the Purple Tier or Tier 1. This metric does not move counties to more restrictive tiers but is required to advance to a less restrictive tier.
The California Department of Public Health assesses counties on a weekly basis. The next report is scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 23.
The more detailed data summaries found on the County’s coronavirus-sd.com website are updated around 5 p.m. daily.
(Jose A. Alvarez/County of San Diego Communications Office)
