Jeffco Reaches Milestone: 70% Of Ages 70 And Older Vaccinated

JEFFERSON COUNTY, CO — The county with the highest population of older adults in Colorado has achieved a COVID-19 vaccination milestone.

As of Tuesday, 70 percent of Jefferson County residents ages 70 and older — 44,843 people — had received their first dose, public health officials said.

Many people told Patch they had to fight for that first dose. Some readers said they spent many hours on the phone, others said they dealt with confusing websites and ended up turning their hunt for a COVID-19 vaccine appointment into a full-time job.

But the effort paid off — as of Tuesday, just under 35 percent of people ages 70 and older in the county had received both doses and are inoculated, Jefferson County Public Health said. Those who've received one dose are set to be inoculated within weeks.

Since the start of the pandemic, around 80 percent of deaths in the county were among people ages 70 and older.

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“It’s important that we celebrate this major milestone in the COVID-19 vaccination effort here in Jeffco, because what it really means is more lives saved,” said Dawn Comstock, executive director at Jefferson County Public Health.

“The older adult population in Jeffco has been severely affected by this virus and we are so grateful that the vaccine is now available to provide much needed protection. However, we can’t stop here — we are going to stay focused on getting the rest of the 70+ population vaccinated as well as push forward to vaccinating other high-risk groups as quickly as possible.”

The agency's next goal is to reach the rest of people ages 70 and older to ensure they have access to a vaccine, public health officials said.

"Additionally, providers will continue to make progress with vaccinating populations that recently became eligible to get the vaccine, including people age 65-69, Pre-K through 12th grade school staff and educators as well as licensed child care providers," the public health agency said in a news release.

“Accomplishing this major milestone took the entire Jefferson County community coming together — from health care providers and pharmacies who helped get this safe and effective vaccine into arms, to city and county leaders who advocated to get more vaccine allocated to Jefferson County, to community organizations and neighbors who helped older adults register or get to a vaccine appointment,” Comstock said in a statement.

“On behalf of JCPH, we thank you and we celebrate alongside you.”

The agency released the following tips for making an appointment to receive a vaccine:

• Sign up directly with a local vaccine provider. Health care providers, retail pharmacies and public health clinics have their own registration websites. You may have to create an account, and if you receive a reference code, write it down. A list of providers can be found here. Nick Muerdter, a computer programmer, created an appointment search tool, the Colorado COVID-19 Vaccine Finder, that can help you find an appointment at a pharmacy.
• Help is available if you need assistance with registering for a vaccine. You can call Benefits in Action at 720-221-8354 and they will help you sign up.
• If you are on a wait list, check your email, voicemail and/or text messages often so you do not lose your spot in line.
• You can get vaccinated in any city or county. You are not required to get vaccinated in the community you live in.
• The vaccine is free. Providers should not ask you to pay for the vaccine or other administrative costs, regardless of your insurance status. If you have insurance, the provider may seek reimbursement from your health insurance company for these fees, but you should not be charged.
• You should not be asked to provide ID when registering or when you go to your appointment. However, you may be asked to verify your age or health care worker/first responder status.
• You do not need to be a U.S. citizen, and you will not need to prove lawful presence to get a COVID-19 vaccine in Colorado.

>> More information about getting vaccinated in Jefferson County can be found here. You can also call Jeffco Public Health’s Vaccine Call Center at 303-239-7000 and press option 1 for vaccine information.