Editor's note: This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
Two new distribution centers are making COVID-19 vaccines more available to Plano residents.
A vaccine mega-hub is expected to open next week at Plano ISD's John Clark Stadium parking lot. This site is expected to begin vaccinating residents from the Collin County waitlist beginning next week, Collin County Commissioner Duncan Webb said at a Jan. 20 Plano Chamber of Commerce meeting. This center will be run by Curative, with which Collin County Health Care Services contracted for the site in January.
Collin County Health Care Services has most recently been allotted 2,000 vaccines by the state. Future vaccine allotment will be performance-based, Webb said.
"The more shots you get in the arm faster, the more vaccine you will get," he said.
The center has the capability to administer 6,000 doses per day, a Jan. 21 release from Collin County said.
Collin County Health Care Services requested 10,000 doses from the state Jan. 13 as well as 14,000 doses for Jan. 18 and 42,000 doses per week starting the week of Jan. 25. As of Jan. 20, there are more than 145,000 people on the county's vaccination waitlist.
Baylor Scott & White Health locations began operating as state-designated vaccination hubs this week in Collin and Dallas counties, according to a statement from the health system. The Baylor Scott & White Medical Center in Plano received 975 Pfizer vaccines in the latest allotment from the state. Vaccines will be administered at the Plano campus, said Matthew Olivolo, senior marketing and public relations consultant for Baylor Scott & White Health. A continual hub for the health system, however, will operate at its Frisco location.
The hospital is reaching out to schedule vaccine appointments to high-risk Texans—those who qualify under Phase 1B of the state's vaccination plan—through its online portal, MyBSWHealth, per the statement. Patients of the health system will receive some priority for the vaccine, although any Texan can join the list, Olivolo said.
Accounts for the online portal can be created through Baylor Scott & White's website or app. A phone line dedicated to vaccination information has also been created: 844-279-8222.
State health officials also selected fire departments in Allen and McKinney as COVID-19 vaccination hubs. The county has an agreement with the city of McKinney to pull names for vaccinations in order from the existing waitlist, the county release said. Collin County is also working with local pharmacies and hospitals to use the county waitlist as well, Webb said. The city of Allen and Baylor Scott & White have elected to operate independently from this list, the release said.
A wait-line search tool for those who have signed up for the waitlist was recently released by the county. Those who have registered will receive communication directly from the county via voicemail or email when it is their turn for a vaccination appointment, Collin County Public Information Officer Tim Wyatt said in an email Jan. 21. The county is proceeding in order of those on the waitlist as promised, he said.
The county has created a partnership with 24 cities and four school districts, including the city of Plano and PISD, to provide vaccinations as efficiently as possible, the county's release said.
The vaccine waiting list is currently open to all Texans who are eligible according to the DSHS definitions for Phases 1A and 1B, per the county's vaccine information page.
