6 Steps To Schedule a COVID Vaccination in Sonoma County

Vaccination is the key to stopping the COVID-19 pandemic and returning to normal life. The Food and Drug Administration has approved three different vaccines that are all safe and effective at preventing serious illness requiring hospitalization. As a health insurance broker in Santa Rosa, we join state officials in encouraging you and all Sonoma County residents to get vaccinated as soon as possible. However, supplies of all three vaccines are currently limited, meaning that you need to wait your turn. Here are some steps to find out how and when you can get the vaccine.

1. Know Your Group

Because of limited vaccine supplies, Sonoma County officials are prioritizing residents who are most vulnerable to contracting coronavirus or becoming severely ill from it. To identify the populations most in need, the vaccination distribution plan has several different phases:

•     Phase 1A (started in December 2020)

•     Phase 1B (started in January 2021)

•     Phase 1C
(projected to start in spring 2021)

•     Phase 2
(projected to start in fall 2021)

The vaccine will become available to the general population of Sonoma County during Phase 2. Phases 1A and 1B are further divided into multiple tiers and include the most vulnerable, including health care providers, other essential workers, and the elderly.

As of this writing, populations in Tier 1 of Phase 1B are the most recent group to which vaccines have become available. This group includes emergency workers, educators and child care providers, agriculture and manufacturing workers, grocery and restaurant workers, and people at least 65 years old. You must be a resident of Sonoma County to receive a vaccine here.

2. Find Out Where To Go

There are currently 19 vaccination sites operating in Sonoma County. The most recently added were opened in February 2021 at Sonoma Valley Veterans Memorial Hall, Heurta Gym in Windsor, and the fitness center on the SRJC Petaluma campus. Other vaccination sites in Sonoma County include 11 Safeway stores and at least one CVS pharmacy location.

3. Talk to Your Doctor

Your primary care physician has vaccination information specific to your group and individual status. He or she can inform you when you are eligible and what the next step should be.

You should talk to your doctor if you are not sure when you are eligible for the vaccine. Please do not try to make an appointment before it becomes available to your group. Otherwise, you’ll only get in the way of people whose need is greater than yours.

4. Make an Appointment

Currently, vaccinations are available by appointment only. It is unclear whether walk-up vaccinations will ever be given. Most vaccination sites require that you schedule online, while some are accepting phone calls. If you cannot make your appointment, please call to cancel. This allows your appointment time to be given to someone else.

5. Receive Follow-Up Instructions

Only one of the approved COVID vaccines can be given in only one shot. The others require two shots, and you have to wait a few weeks in between. If you require a second booster, you will receive instructions on how and when to receive it. Be sure you pay attention.

6. Prepare for Possible Costs

You do not have to pay for the vaccination itself. The federal government is providing it at no cost. However, the provider who gives you the vaccination may charge an administration fee. If you have group or
individual health insurance coverage, your provider may bill your insurance company to cover that fee.

Talk to a Health Insurance Broker in Santa Rosa

The government is subsidizing COVID vaccines for everyone due to the national emergency. Additionally, the Affordable Care Act may make additional subsidies available to you that make health insurance coverage less costly in general. For more information about individual and family plans, contact us at 707-823-3689.