California health organizations stage mass vaccination hubs

OAKLAND, Calif., Feb. 4, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Health organizations in California are joining together in an unprecedented effort to vaccinate their members and the general public using a network of COVID-19 mass vaccination hubs throughout the state.

The consortium, initiated by Kaiser Permanente, includes Adventist Health, the California Medical Association, Dignity Health, and Futuro Health. California Primary Care Association will also be working with the consortium to ensure broad equitable access to the sites through its member federally qualified community health centers. In addition, the American Red Cross has provided its expertise on mass site planning.

The first 2 vaccination hubs are expected to open at Cal Poly Pomona, and at Moscone Center in San Francisco, on Feb. 5. Establishment of the hubs is aimed at accelerating vaccination of vulnerable individuals, especially those 75 years and older, as prioritized by the California Department of Public Health.

Starting Thursday, Feb. 4, available appointments at the consortium's vaccination hubs can be scheduled at California's My Turn vaccine scheduling website, myturn.ca.gov.  

The hubs will offer vaccinations by appointment only, 7 days a week, as long as supply is available. Each site will start on Friday, Feb. 5, at a lower capacity, ramping up volume as site operations are refined, and continuing to increase the week of Feb. 7. Each site will have the capacity of administering up to 10,000 doses per day, depending on supply. The success of these hubs will be highly dependent on the available supply of vaccine.

Kaiser Permanente members and patients who use other providers in the consortium can seek vaccination appointments at the hubs, along with the general public. Kaiser Permanente members can also continue getting vaccinated as part of the organization's direct outreach. Members will be notified when an appointment is available for them at a Kaiser Permanente facility, with the current focus on outreach to people 75 and over, and then to 65-and-over as vaccine supply allows.

The goal for this unique collaboration among a consortium of health organizations and the State of California is to contribute to the broader solution for vaccine access, eventually creating a network of hubs around the state. Future locations will be chosen to maximize access, especially for communities with rural populations and people who have historically experienced lower rates of vaccination. No single organization could achieve this scale on its own.

"We want to acknowledge and thank the state for making additional vaccine available, which has made it possible to open this site for the community and our members. We are also grateful to the state for providing additional vaccine to allow us to increase our appointments for our members in our medical centers," said Greg A. Adams, chairman and CEO of Kaiser Permanente. "We have helped form this consortium because our respective organizations recognize that we need to harness our collective efforts to make immediate and meaningful progress toward mass vaccination."

"We've experienced the tremendous power of collaboration throughout the COVID-19 pandemic," said Scott Reiner, CEO of Adventist Health. "Adventist Health is proud to continue that collaboration through this effort to provide much-needed vaccine to communities across California, especially our most vulnerable, in alignment with our mission of living God's love."

"Our health care teams are diligently working to get as many 'shots-in-arms' as possible for those most at risk," said Daryn Kumar, president and CEO of Dignity Health's Saint Francis Memorial Hospital and St. Mary's Medical Center. "Despite the extra demands our caregivers have faced over the past year, they are once again responding with enthusiasm to help pave our community's way out of this historic emergency."

"Futuro Health is pleased to mobilize students, faculty, and alumni of allied health and nursing programs in support of this effort," said Van Ton-Quinlivan, CEO of Futuro Health, a nonprofit organization founded by Kaiser Permanente and SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West to address the shortage in the allied health workforce. "This mass vaccination creates opportunity for students to help out and engage in direct patient care, gaining clinical hours required for licensure which has been so difficult to obtain during the pandemic. We need to ensure we have the next generation of workers to deliver care." 

About Kaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. We are recognized as one of America's leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. Founded in 1945, Kaiser Permanente has a mission to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve 12.4 million members in 8 states and the District of Columbia. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal Permanente Medical Group physicians, specialists, and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the-art care delivery, and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education, and the support of community health.

CONTACT: Marc Brown, Kaiser Permanente, [email protected]

SOURCE Kaiser Permanente

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