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      Vaccines

      This information can change. Please double check resources and continue to monitor them for up to date information.

      We are currently in Phase 1a of the vaccination distribution plan.  See Oregon Health Authority's allocation plan.  Text "ORCOVID" to 898211 to receive text alerts when changes to vaccination eligibility occur. 
      On January 15th, Governor Kate Brown announced a delay in expanding the vaccination eligibility pool due to a significant reduction in the expected vaccine supply from the federal government. As a result, educators and school staff vaccinations will be delayed until January 25th. Seniors will be phased in by age.  Adults 80 years old and over may begin receiving the vaccine February 8th, with groups for those 75 and over, 70 and over and 65 and over to follow. Please watch the full press conference for more information.
      If you are in a Phase 1a category and eligible to be vaccinated, please reach out to your local health department for vaccination sites in your area. See the chart below for county specific updates.
      PHASE 1 A: 
      • Hospital or urgent care workers
      • Skilled nursing or memory care facility residents and staff
      • Emergency Medical Services providers and other first responders
      • Healthcare interpreters and traditional healthcare workers
      • Long term care facility residents and staff
      • Hospice workers
      • Mobile Crisis Care
      • Correctional facility staff
      • Out patient healthcare providers
      • Public health site staff
      • Day treatment facility staff
      • Non emergency medical transit staff
      • Caregivers of medically fragile children or adults who live at home
      While vaccinations arriving in our state is a welcome breath of the fresh air, the expectation is that it will still be months before vaccination is available to the general public.  First rounds of vaccine will go to frontline healthcare workers, then to long term care facilities, their staff and vulnerable populations. Oregon is setting up an advisory committee to work in partnership with OHA to craft an equity focused distribution plan for the public.  

      Oregon Vaccination Dashboard 

      Vaccination Updates and Info By County *not all counties have designated vaccination pages yet:

      Baker Benton Clackamas* Clatsop Columbia* Coos
      Crook Curry Deschutes Douglas Gilliam Grant
      Harney Hood River Jackson Jefferson Josephine Klamath
      Lake Lane Lincoln Linn Malheur Marion
      Morrow Multnomah* Polk Sherman Tillamook Umatilla
      Union Wallowa Wasco Washington* Wheeler Yamhill

       * If you are an employer or solo practitioner in the Phase 1a category and in the Portland metro area, please fill out Phase 1 Request for Vaccination.

      Both Pfizer and Moderna boast over 94% efficacy rates. Comparatively the flu vaccine's efficacy rate is generally between 40-60%. The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines will be the first to use messenger RNA technology (or mRNA vaccines). It differs from traditional vaccines, which often use a weakened or dead version of a virus, or a laboratory-generated protein. Both vaccines use a snippet of the virus’s genetic code to instruct cells to build the spike protein on the surface of the coronavirus, teaching the immune system to recognize the real thing. When our immune systems recognize that the protein doesn’t belong there they begin building an immune response and making antibodies, like what happens in natural infection against COVID-19. At the end of the process, our bodies have learned how to protect against future infection. The benefit of mRNA vaccines, like all vaccines, is those vaccinated gain this protection without ever having to risk the serious consequences of getting sick with COVID-19. Both vaccines require 2 doses of vaccination to be effective.
      Emergency Use Authorization is a tool of the FDA to speed up processes when need is urgent and there are no available alternatives. This can be used to allow drugs to be utilized a different way than previously classified and it can cut red tape for new therapies.  Clinical trials must be 2 months past phase 3 studies and documentation from all phases must be included in the application for emergency use. While the requirements stipulate sample groups to include at least 3,000 people; COVID vaccination trials have included tens of thousands of people.  The FDA has also made all vaccination trials information available to corollary state bodies for a simultaneous review process.
      Governor Kate Brown announced that Oregon is joining other western states to review the safety and efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines once approved by the FDA. The Scientific Safety Review Workgroup includes Oregon, Washington, California, Nevada and Colorado.

      The panel will include experts appointed by all member states, and nationally recognized scientists with expertise in immunization and public health. This panel will review all publicly available data concurrently with federal reviews and will present a report as soon as possible after the FDA approves a vaccine. This will happen for all approved COVID-19 vaccines.

      This is an added layer of independent expert review that will help build confidence in the vaccine and bring an additional layer of scrutiny to this important process. OHA is engaging with communities and groups that are most affected by COVID- 19, and is actively working to understand and communicate the safety and efficacy of these vaccines.