BRIEFING FOR ETHNIC & COMMUNITY MEDIA HOSTED BY: The Los Angeles County COVID-19
As COVID-19 continues to ravage the nation, and nations, states and cities fight this uphill battle against this unseen enemy, Los Angeles County officials are doing everything they can to control the spread. In a briefing for Ethnic & Community Media hosted by both The Los Angeles County COVID-19 Joint Information Center and presented by Ethnic Media Services, health officials shared information about what communities need to do to protect themselves from falling deeper into the despair of the pandemic.
Eloisa Gonzalez, MD, MPH, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Director, Integrative Medicine, The Wellness Center at LAC+USC Historic General Hospital and Spokesperson, COVID-19 Vaccine Spanish Media presented a series of slides to illustrate the where the numbers were in the fight. According to the data while the month of January had seen a 70% decrease in infection rates she still insisted that these numbers were still high for hospitalizations. Hospitals are still overwhelmed and deaths remain high thus impeding the ability to take care of other serious ailments.
Also in attendance were Dr. Karen Kim, Los Angeles County Department of Health Services, Director of Primary Care Clinical Quality who is tasked with helping lead the vaccine rollout at Health Services to patients and Dr. Raymond Perry, Los Angeles County Department of Health Services, and Director of Hubert Humphrey Comprehensive Health Center, South Los Angeles. Dr Kim shared perspectives on the roll out of the vaccines while Dr Perry discussed the importance of taking the vaccine.
All three doctors shared the need for a proactive approach to stemming this deadly virus. As far as concerns about the vaccine shortages or fears about the vaccines they emphasized the safety and effectiveness of the vaccines . Given with no financial obligation they are free and the only way to truly protect you and your family. Vaccines being a key factor to fight COVID 19, strategies have been formulated to get more vaccines to everyone and seniors in particular.Support for vaccination sites in neighborhoods were paramount. The County is operating five large-scale vaccination sites and two walk up sites but they are just part of a much larger network of more than 300 locations in Los Angeles County where residents can be vaccinated, including many pharmacies, community vaccination clinics and health centers. As vaccines become more available, many health care providers and health plans will be able to vaccinate their own patients.
Here is some information about how you can get in line for a vaccine
The main way to schedule COVID-19 vaccination appointments is by logging on to VaccinateLACounty.com or VacunateLosAngeles.com to check appointment availability.
○ There’s also a COVID-19 vaccination call center for residents who do not have computer access or have a disability that requires phone assistance.
- Residents without computer access can call 833-540-0473 between 8:00 am and 8:30 pm 7 days a week for assistance with appointments.
- The operators speak a variety of languages and can help people who do not speak English as their main language.Every resident is guaranteed a second dose. And most individuals will be able to receive their second dose at the same site where they received their first dose. I know this has caused a lot of stress for our residents and we deeply appreciate everyone’s patience as we make improvements to the appointment system
The county was also doing its best to provide information to dispel myths and misinformation about vaccines.
In order of priority right now arw healthcare workers, seniors 65 and older, frontline workers, educators and farmworkers.
The speakers also stressed to look out for scammers who would try to skip the line to get a vaccine. And it is very important for immigrants to note that they can get a vaccine regardless of their immigration status.There is no birth certificate check or immigration status verification for a vaccine.
