More Washington residents eligible for coronavirus vaccine starting Wednesday
![WSU nursing student Dane Lawson loads up another dose of Moderna COVID-19 vaccine during a Spokane Regional Health District vaccine clinic on March 2 at the House of Charity in downtown Spokane. (DAN PELLE/THE SPOKESMAN-REVIEW)](https://thumb.spokesman.com/C92tOthoDDSg9jFVg9vOIghHuxA=/1200x0/media.spokesman.com/photos/2021/03/16/605126f191cdc.image.jpg)
Starting Wednesday, more Washington residents will be eligible to get vaccinated statewide.
High-risk critical workers, including those who work in agriculture or food processing, public transit, grocery stores, corrections and the courts, and all other first responders not included in earlier vaccination phases, will be eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine starting Wednesday.
Pregnant women and residents with disabilities that put them at high-risk for severe disease from COVID-19 are also eligible to get the vaccine starting this week.
The next tier does not include restaurant workers, despite restaurants’ partial reopening, although the department is still discussing the possibility of including them.
“If you look at the largest outbreak numbers, they’re in restaurants and bars,” Dr. Scott Lindquist, acting state health officer, told reporters last week. “But the fact comes to this: we just don’t have enough vaccine to (include) everyone.”
People who are incarcerated will likely not be eligible to get vaccinated until April under the Department of Health’s allocation guidance, despite staff at correctional facilities being eligible for the shots starting Wednesday.
To see if you are eligible for the vaccine, use the state’s PhaseFinder tool, and to find a vaccine appointment, visit the Department of Health’s vaccine locator site or call (800) 525-0127 and press #.
Here’s a look at local numbersThe Spokane Regional Health District confirmed 48 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday and no additional deaths.
There are 50 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 in Spokane hospitals.
The Panhandle Health District confirmed 21 new cases and four additional deaths on Tuesday. So far, 279 Panhandle residents have died due to COVID-19 in the pandemic.
There are 27 Panhandle residents hospitalized with COVID-19.