FORT WORTH (WBAP/KLIF)- Health leaders are discussing how the Covid-19 vaccine roll out is going in North Texas.
Dallas and Tarrant County Health Officials are preparing to receive larger allotments of the vaccine to distribute to more residents.
Health surveys suggest over 60% of North Texans are either somewhat or very hesitant to get the Covid-19 vaccine.
Allison Winnike President and CEO of “The Immunization Partnership” said that’s because there’s been a lot of mixed messages from local government.
“These messages have confused the public, damaged credibility and really allowed fear and misinformation to spread,” said Winnike. “The Covid-19 Vaccine is the best tool we have to end this pandemic and return to normal life. It will also save lives,” she said.
However, Winnike said we need at least 70%, up to 93% of Texans vaccinated to get over this pandemic. But with problems of trust, vaccine availability and access, there’s a lot of barriers they need to overcome.
“We need our partners to help us craft tailored messages to local residents so they can get accurate information and have trust in the vaccine,” she said.
Winnike also talked about identifying communities with the highest risk and those with limited access.
Tarrant County and the UNT Health Science Center are teaming up to prepare for more vaccine shipments and providing them to as many residents as possible.
Michael Williams, president of UNT Health Science Center said they start by looking at the data and determine how they will take away barriers from people getting the vaccine.
He said other than having hubs, they plan to have drive-thru centers, have mobile applications go directly into neighborhoods and rely on partners and pharmacies to help administer the vaccines.
Williams stresses the importance of partnerships to help those with limited access to transportation and those in smaller/rural communities.
Tarrant County Public Health officials say so far, 350,000 people have registered for the vaccine and 45,000 doses have been administered.
