Atlanta, GA — The Georgia Department of Public Health on Jan. 10 announced a new vaccine locator tool for its website.

The web address is https://dph.georgia.gov.

To access the locator tool directly, click here.

“The tool allows users to search by county for a vaccine provider in their community, and provides location and contact information for the provider,” the Department of Public Health announced. “This is not a centralized scheduling tool.”

Currently, the only locations offering vaccines to the public in DeKalb County are operated by the local Board of Health.

The vaccine roll out is struggling to keep up with demand. On Jan. 9, the DeKalb County Board of Health paused registration for vaccines after more than 13,000 people signed up. “Appointments at both sites (Doraville and Stonecrest) are completely filled through next Saturday,” a spokesperson for the Board of Health said.

Health officials urge the public to be patient until more vaccines are available.

Here’s more information from the Department of Public Health about the vaccine locator tool:

County health departments and private providers are included in the locator. Additional locations statewide will be added when providers are ready to safely administer vaccine, and as vaccine supply allows. All health departments and most other providers require appointments for vaccine administration. Because vaccine supply is limited, providers may not have immediate appointments available.

Effective tomorrow, Jan. 11, Georgia will be in phase 1A+ of vaccine administration. That phase includes: healthcare workers (physicians, nurses, EMS personnel, laboratory technicians, environmental services, etc.); residents and staff of long-term care facilities; adults aged 65+ and their caregivers, as applicable; and law enforcement, firefighters, 9-1-1 dispatchers and first responders.

The process of administering COVID-19 vaccine is more complicated than other common vaccines, such as flu vaccine, and requires providers to have more resources available, including an area where individuals can be monitored for 15 minutes after being vaccinated. Many providers with vaccine are still vaccinating their own staffs and patients and are not open to the public for vaccination yet.

As both Pfizer and Moderna are able to ramp up production of vaccine in the coming weeks, supply should better meet demand for each phase of allocation and administration. Until that time, providers and the public are urged to be patient as we work together to get vaccine distributed in the most efficient and equitable way possible.

All Georgians, including those who are vaccinated, are urged to continue to follow basic COVID-19 prevention measures: wear a mask, practice social distancing, wash your hands frequently and follow the guidance of Public Health and the guidelines in the Governor’s Executive Order.

For updates on COVID-19, follow @GaDPH and @GovKemp on Twitter and @GaDPH and @GovKemp on Facebook.

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