Last Updated: Sep 23, 2021
On Tuesday, September 21, Acting Secretary of Health Alison Beam signed an order to ensure that vaccine providers are prepared to start COVID-19 booster shots as soon as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issues the necessary federal guidance.
The CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) is scheduled to discuss boosters on Sept. 22 and 23 and is expected to make recommendations and provide guidance to vaccine providers following the meeting.
The Department of Health’s order requires vaccine providers, as possible, to:
- provide online scheduling for vaccination appointments,
- provide a telephone number, with prompts to a live agent during normal business hours, to assist in scheduling appointments,
- offer walk-in appointments, and
- work with local Area Agencies on Aging (AAA) and Medical Assistance Managed Care Organizations (MCO) to help schedule eligible adults and people who cannot leave their homes.
There are
currently more than 2,000 vaccine providers across the state with COVID-19
vaccine inventory. To date, vaccine providers have administered 12.6 million
total vaccine doses. More than 6.1 million Pennsylvanians are fully vaccinated;
with a seven-day moving average of more than 15,600 people per day receiving
vaccinations.