After shutting down late last week due to scarce supply of COVID-19 vaccine shots, Los Angeles city vaccination sites will prioritize people getting second doses this week, officials announced Monday.
The city is expected to receive 54,000 doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine and 4,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine this week, and officials “will prioritize individuals whose second doses are due in the days ahead,” according to a news release.
L.A. County health officials had previously announced that more than half of the doses expected in the region this week would go toward those getting their second shot.
More first dose appointments will become available here if the city receives additional vaccine supply, officials said.
This week’s second dose appointments were automatically scheduled for those who received their first shot last month at a city-run site — Hansen Dam, San Fernando Park, Crenshaw Christian Center, Lincoln Park and Dodger Stadium.
Patients should have received a text or email from the city’s online portal confirming their second appointment and giving details to receive the shot.
Last week, vaccination sites run by Los Angeles County began prioritizing second doses, while city sites were able to give out both. That was until Mayor Eric Garcetti announced Thursday evening that those sites would close Friday and Saturday due to a lack of supply.
“Our City has the tools, the infrastructure, and the determination to vaccinate Angelenos swiftly and safely — we simply need more doses,” Garcetti said in a statement Monday. “Our density and demographics have made our region an epicenter of this crisis in recent months, and with a reliable, consistent supply of vaccines, we can get more shots into people’s arms, bring down rates of infection, hospitalization, and death, and defeat this pandemic once and for all.”
About 4,600 first doses will be available this week at L.A.’s newest site at Pierce College and mobile vaccination clinics serving vulnerable communities.
As of last week, Los Angeles County has administered more than 1.3 million COVID-19 vaccine doses, 298,875 of which have been second doses, according to the Public Health Department.
Statewide, California has administered 6 million shots, while averaging over a million a week, Gov. Gavin Newsom said. Despite the inroads, however, supply continues to be an issue.
And there are disparities: California health officials said that about 33% of people vaccinated are white, while 16% are Latino, 13% are Asian, only 2.9% are black and 0.3% are American Indian or Alaska Native.
Additionally, 58.5% of people vaccinated are female, while 41.1% are male.
