People 65 and older can now get the COVID-19 vaccine in South Florida, although finding a place that is offering appointments can be difficult, frustrating and tedious.
Some hospitals are offering vaccines to seniors, and drive-thru vaccination sites have also opened in Broward County. But options in South Florida are still limited.
Vaccines haven’t arrived to area Publix stores yet, unlike in Citrus, Hernando and Marion counties. There are also no drive-thru vaccination sites in Miami-Dade or Monroe, although leaders hope that will change soon.
For now, that means seniors will have to try and get an appointment with a hospital distributing the vaccine or a drive-thru site in Broward County.
It can be difficult keeping track of where vaccines are available in South Florida and how you can get an appointment. Here’s a list of places offering the vaccines. It will continue to be updated.
And remember, no one should charge you for the vaccine (taxpayers are paying the bill) and Florida is not requiring proof of residency. That means a Miami-Dade resident can get the vaccine in Broward or vice versa. Snowbirds can get it, too.
Where can people 65 and older get the COVID-19 vaccine in Miami-Dade?Patrick Range, owner of Range Funeral Homes, was among the first five county residents to get the COVID-19 vaccine from RN Susana Flores at Jackson Hospital in Miami on Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2020, as Jackson Health System began vaccinating people 65 and older. The hospital said it plans to vaccinate more than 10,000 people in the coming weeks.
Miami-Dade County has a website, miamidade.gov/vaccine, where it plans to post updates on where seniors, and eventually the rest of the general public, can find and schedule COVID-19 vaccination appointments.
At the moment, here are the places offering vaccines:
▪ Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach is booking appointments for people 75 and older and will eventually lower it to 65. Call 305-674-2312 to schedule an appointment, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday through Sunday.
▪ Jackson Health System, the county’s public hospital network, has launched an online portal for people 65 and older to schedule vaccine appointments. All of its appointment slots are currently full, but the hospital plans to add more in the future. To check for available appointments, visit https://jhsmiami.org/comvac/.
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▪ Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens on Friday will begin providing vaccinations by appointment to seniors and frontline healthcare workers. It had an unannounced “soft opening” Wednesday as a vaccination site. Florida has not provided details yet on how people can make an appointment. The stadium will also continue to provide COVID-19 testing.
▪ Florida’s Department of Health said its Miami-Dade office plans to launch vaccination clinics soon. Besides Hard Rock Stadium, another place expected to be a vaccination site is Marlins Park in Miami, date still unknown.
▪ Florida International University has applied to be a vaccination site and is waiting to hear back from the Florida Department of Health.
▪ Baptist Health, one of the county’s largest private hospitals, also expects to launch its online portal to schedule vaccination appointments as early as next week.
▪ Miami-Dade County has also begun contacting homebound seniors age 65 and older who live in county facilities or receive county services to offer vaccination appointments.
▪ Miami Beach plans to begin administering COVID-19 vaccines to some seniors living in affordable housing or who are confined to their homes. Miami Beach Fire Rescue, which received 600 doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, is expected to begin on-site vaccinations Wednesday, Jan. 6, at the Council Towers North senior affordable housing building.
22 Florida Publix stores will be administering vaccines, but not in South Florida
Where to get the COVID-19 vaccine in Broward?On Sunday, Jan. 3, 2021, motorists line up for COVID-19 vaccination shots for people who are 65 and older as site staffers assist at Vista View Park in Davie, Florida.
Memorial Healthcare System is now offering Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines to senior citizens. Appointments can be made at the MyChart portal, https://mychart.mhs.net for current Memorial Healthcare patients. Others have to call 954-276-4340.
You can make an appointment with Memorial to get the vaccine at the two following locations:
▪ The Memorial Regional Conference Center, 3501 Johnson St. in Hollywood, noon to 7:30 p.m. Mondays, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Tuesday through Friday.
▪ Memorial Specialty Pharmacy, 9581 Premier Pkwy. in Miramar, 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday.
The Florida Department of Health in Broward County has created a website to schedule COVID-19 vaccine appointments. As of Monday, all of the appointment slots are full. The health department says it plans to add additional appointment slots in the coming weeks at https://browardcovidvaccine.com/.
The appointment-only vaccine sites listed on the website above include.
▪ Tradewinds Park, 3600 W Sample Rd., Coconut Creek — open 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday through Thursday.
▪ Vista View Park, 4001 SW 142nd Ave., Davie — open 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday through Thursday.
▪ Markham Park & Target Range, 16001 W State Road 84 in Sunrise — open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday
▪ Holiday Park and War Memorial in Fort Lauderdale, a former COVID-19 testing site that will reopen Thursday as a vaccine site.
▪ Central Broward Park and Broward County Stadium, 3700 NW 11th Place in Lauderhill, is set to open Friday.
Broward Health, the hospital network, has all of its vaccination appointments full through February and is no longer accepting appointments for now.
All Cleveland Clinic Florida locations, including its Weston campus, have run out of vaccination appointments for now. Cleveland Clinic said it will resume scheduling appointments through its website for current patients once it gets more doses. To check for slots, visit https://my.clevelandclinic.org/landing/covid-19-vaccine/florida
How to get the COVID-19 vaccine in the Florida Keys?
By next week, people in the Florida Keys who are 65 and older will be able to register online or by phone to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, the Florida Health Department in Monroe County said Wednesday.
But the department couldn’t say when the vaccines will arrive.
So far, Monroe is reserving appointments only for healthcare professionals and people with special needs who are 65 over and are registered with Monroe County Emergency Management — meaning they need special assistance during emergency evacuations and times when storm shelters are open.
Eligibility requirements to register with the emergency management department include being dependent on oxygen, having limited mobility, needing assistance with daily activities like being fed, taking medications and hygiene, having moderate dementia and/or cognitive impairment, being wheelchair bound and being in need of wound care and/or constant supervision.
Registration is available at www.monroecounty-fl.gov/148/Special-Needs-Registry.
For seniors in the general population, a website and phone number to schedule COVID-19 vaccine appointments is still on hold.
This article will be updated.
Miami Herald staff writer David Goodhue, Gwen Filosa and Douglas Hanks contributed to this report.
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