Press Release 3/5/2021
The City of Long Beach announced today an updated schedule for vaccination prioritization will begin on Monday, March 8. The updated schedule allows for Long Beach residents ages 16 to 64, with physical or developmental disabilities, to be eligible for COVID-19 vaccination.
“We are grateful to now have the ability to start vaccinating people with disabilities,” said Mayor Robert Garcia. “We are going to immediately prioritize this group for our clinics and home visits when needed.”
Currently, vaccines are being distributed to populations identified in Phase 1A and Phase 1B, Tier 1. Long Beach will be one of the first health jurisdictions in California to expand vaccine access to people younger than 65 with disabilities. The City received permission from the State of California to begin these vaccinations ahead of the March 15 rollout planned statewide due to the Health and Human Services Department’s success in vaccinating people in the current available phases.
To date, more than 35,000 older adults, representing 66% of the older adult population, have been vaccinated in Long Beach. More than 16% of the total population in Long Beach has been vaccinated–a number that rises to over 20% when looking only at Long Beach residents old enough to receive the vaccine.
Beginning Monday, individuals with disabilities who meet the following criteria may show up at the Long Beach Convention Center between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m., no appointment needed, to receive their vaccine:
Individuals must have a physical or developmental disability.
Documentation could include a placard, doctor’s note or other appropriate information
Individuals must be able to prove that they live in Long Beach
Documentation could include a utility bill with their address or a driver’s license
The City has offered vaccination opportunities to all eligible residents who were signed up in VaxLB who qualify under the current categories. Anyone who has signed up in VaxLB but has not been contacted or has experienced any difficulty should contact the City’s Vaccine center at [email protected] or 562.570.4636. The City also is planning mobile vaccine clinics outside of Downtown to serve people who have disabilities.
To date, there have been 51,472 COVID-19 cases in Long Beach and 862 people have died from the virus. More than 120,900 vaccines have been administered. All vaccines are administered free of charge and have been provided directly by the federal government.
For the latest information on COVID-19, with details on all that the City of Long Beach is doing to keep our residents safe, visit longbeach.gov/COVID19 and follow @LongBeachCity on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
