In an April 1 press conference, Governor Hogan announced several updates on the COVID pandemic. At the forefront, the Governor announced that everyone 16 and older would now be authorized to preregister for appointments at mass vaccination sites, and these individuals will begin receiving appointments as they become available starting April 27th. He maintained that,
“As a result of the robust infrastructure that we have built, our rapidly accelerating vaccination rate, and finally that critical increase in vaccine supply, we will likely be able to make announcements in the days ahead regarding further acceleration of vaccine eligibility phases…In preparation for that, effective today, we are immediately opening pre-registration to Phase 3. Every single Marylander who wants a COVID-19 vaccine can now pre-register for an appointment at a mass vaccination site.”
As vaccines continue to roll out, the Governor warned of the increasing prevalence of coronavirus variants and emphasized the need to administer vaccines as quickly as possible in order to stave off their spread. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there have been 651 recorded COVID-19 infections in Maryland caused by variants as of this Thursday, almost 94% of which were caused by the mutation of the coronavirus first detected in the United Kingdom (which was discovered in Maryland in January).
To prevent the further spread of these variants, Governor Hogan emphasized a need for the state to focus its efforts on getting vulnerable “hard-to-reach” populations vaccinated. Plans to create more clinics to accommodate those without access to transportation were announced, and counties were called upon to submit local vaccine equity plans by Monday. Anne Arundel, Caroline, Carroll, Garrett, Howard, Kent, Prince George’s, Frederick, Somerset, St. Mary’s and Wicomico are among those counties that have turned theirs in thus far, and Harford County is said to have already implemented its own equity plan (which includes roundtable discussions with predominantly Black churches, mobile vaccination clinics, and the hiring of community health personnel).
Mass vaccination sites are also set to be expanded. Governor Hogan has announced all of the locations for the mass vaccination sites that are opening in the month of April:
- Maryland State Fairgrounds (Baltimore County)
- Greenbelt Metro Station (Prince George’s County – in partnership with FEMA, will have the capacity to administer up to 3,000 shots per day and will primarily serve Prince Georgians in underserved ZIP codes)
- Montgomery College, Germantown (Montgomery County)
- Frederick Community College (Frederick County)
- Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium (Anne Arundel County)
- Ripken Stadium (Harford County)
- The Mall in Columbia (Howard County)
Watch today’s press conference.
View the slides from today’s press conference.
For Further Reading:
