Bayfront Health to start vaccinating seniors

Image via AP.

Bayfront Health St. Petersburg is expanding its vaccination program starting Wednesday to patients 65 and older.

The health system will be reaching out directly to those eligible with scheduling information due to the limited supply of vaccine. Appointments will be first come, first served.

Bayfront will be using the Moderna vaccine for this group, and will have two vaccination sites in an effort to be more accessible. The sites include:

— Bayfront Health St. Petersburg, 701 6th St. South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701

— Bayfront Health St. Petersburg Emergency Room Pinellas Park, 3070 Grand Ave., Pinellas Park, FL 33782

Site selection is based on availability at the time of scheduling, and those who receive the first dose will be emailed a link to schedule their second dose.

Earlier this week, the health system administered second doses of the Pfizer vaccine to staff, completing the final step of the vaccination process.

The county health department launched senior vaccinations at the start of January, when appointments were flooded by residents 65 and older looking to get a vaccine.

As of Tuesday, Pinellas County has vaccinated 29,078 individuals, according to the latest state vaccination report.

The county saw a dip in COVID-19 cases in Tuesday’s report, but it is unclear if that pattern will continue.

In Tuesday’s report, the county confirmed 490 new cases after seeing a week of daily caseloads that ranged from 500 to 750. The new cases bring the county’s total caseload to 51,874 since the pandemic began.

Pinellas reported 26 new hospitalizations and three additional deaths Tuesday, bringing the county’s death toll to 1,132.

Pinellas reported a positivity rate of 8.53%, one of only three times in the last two weeks the county has reported a rate lower than 10%.