ORLANDO, Fla. — People 40 and older are now eligible to get the COVID-19 vaccine across Florida.
The federally-run site at Valence College West Campus is preparing to experience a big increase in demand for vaccinations as the state expands eligibility to all adults next week.
The site will once again administer thousands of first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine every day, which is a change from what officials said last week, when they told Channel 9 only 500 first doses would be available.
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On Monday, the site will offer thousands of first and second doses.
In Orange County, leaders said they will open more appointments for the shots at the convention center Monday morning.
The site has already been dealing with an increase in demand for vaccinations since it started vaccinating people 40 and up last week.
The county said it is doing something for people who aren’t able to get an appointment Monday.
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Officials said if you get a message saying, “No appointments available” you should leave the browser open because the service they use for the website has created a waiting room.
CDR Maguire is the company that operates the appointment portal.
A spokesperson told Channel 9 that if the portal says there are no appointments available, to leave the browser open and it will keep you in a queue. That way, if there are any cancellations it will allow you to fill those spots.
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When the appointment portal opened last week, all 7,000 appointments were booked within 13 minutes.
Orange County Health Officer Dr. Raul Pino said that before you can get an appointment you need to register.
Starting today, all individuals age 40+ are eligible to receive COVID-19 vaccine in Florida at any vaccination site.
— Florida Dept. Health (@HealthyFla) March 29, 2021
➡️ Preregister for an appointment at https://t.co/BtmviJtKgY.
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“Our advice has always been, register in advance, put in all your information so that you don’t waste that precious time figuring out what to do,” he said.
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Cox Media Group
