AUSTIN (WBAP/KLIF News) – The State of Texas is rolling out its plans to administer COVID-19 vaccines to residents.
Governor Greg Abbott said Friday Texas is participating the Pharmacy Partnership for Long-Term Care Program.
The announcement comes hours after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced it’s working to rapidly finalize and issue an emergency use authorization for Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.
The program designed to inoculate staff and residents of long-term care facilities against the virus, which has hit this demographic hard nationwide.
According to state data, almost 5,600 residents of Texas nursing homes have died of COVID-19 since the pandemic hit in March.
The program free of charge to participating facilities and sends staff and Pfizer vaccines from partnering Walgreens and CVS locations to administer the shots.
According to the governor’s office, more than 1,200 skilled nursing facilities and more than 2,000 other long-term care facilities have signed up for the program, totaling more than 225,000 beds.
Participating Texas pharmacies should get the vaccines the week of December 21st and the program kicks off December 28th.
Governor Abbott said the program will help the State of Texas facilitate safe vaccinations, especially among some of the most vulnerable populations.
“It will help us protect residents and staff of long-term care faculties from COVID-19. I thank the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for offering this program free of charge to these facilities and for working alongside us to keep our communities safe,” he said.
The governor’s office advises long-term care facilities that would to enroll in the pharmacy program can sign up with the Texas Department of State Health Services’ Immunization Program to receive vaccines and vaccinate their own staff and residents or partner with a local pharmacy or other vaccine provider.
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