Seattle launches standby vaccine list to hand out extra doses at end of day

With Seattle looking to avoid wasting any doses of COVID-19 vaccine, the city is now allowing people to put themselves on “standby” status should there be any extra doses at the end of the day.

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According to the city, the Seattle Fire Department’s Mobile Vaccination Teams (MVT) often have two or three extra doses at the end of day-long distribution events held in neighborhoods deemed to be most vulnerable to the virus.

Those doses must be used, lest they expire. To ensure that they aren’t wasted, the SFD will send out an “Alert Seattle” text message to some or all people on the standby list around 4:30 p.m. each day, provided they can meet the MVT “at a fixed location within 30 minutes.” If you are eligible for the vaccine and able to be there within that time frame, all you need to do is open the link in the text message and select “Yes.”

“If standby appointments remain available, you will then be directed to a confirmation screen and you will need to immediately depart to meet the MVTs,” the city describes. “Your second dose will be scheduled upon your arrival.”

Registration will also be confirmed on-site if a standby dose is made available.

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The city also emphasizes that if you are not yet vaccinated, putting yourself on the standby list shouldn’t be your only plan for receiving your first dose. The standby list is limited to those who are currently eligible to be vaccinated, but still offers a potential path to those who’ve been unable to get an appointment thus far.

If you are over the age of 65, you can put your name on the list at this link. You see the full list of vaccination locations in Seattle here.

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