Self-Scheduling COVID-19 Vaccinations Starts Sunday In Virginia

Updated (April 16, 11:40 a.m.): This story was updated with information provided by Gov. Ralph Northam's office about the availability of the three COVID-19 vaccines.

VIRGINIA — When Virginia opens up COVID-19 vaccinations for all adults 16 and older on Sunday, people looking to book an appointment will encounter a different scheduling process, according to a Virginia Department of Health spokeswoman.

“Sunday morning, the vaccinate.virginia.gov website will switch over from focusing on pre-registration, to helping Virginians schedule their own appointment for a vaccine," VDH's Dena Potter said, in an email. "The site will link to the CDC’s VaccineFinder tool, which is a searchable map-based site that allows people to find available vaccine appointments at Community Vaccination Centers, local health district clinics, pharmacies and hospitals near them."

The Fairfax County Health District, which has been operating its own pre-registration system for much of the last two months, informed residents Wednesday night that they would need to start using VaccineFinder.org to make appointments when the county enters Phase 2 on Sunday.

The state's vaccination system, Vaccinate.Virginia.gov, will remain open after April 18 to help schedule appointments for individuals with Phase 1 eligibility. After April 18, people in the Phase 1 priority group can schedule an appointment either through VaccineFinder.org or VaccinateVirginia.gov. The can also request help scheduling appointments by calling 877-VAX-IN-VA (877-829-4682).

"We will continue to prioritize those who were eligible in Phase 1 because they were more at-risk of contracting or becoming seriously ill from COVID-19," Potter said. "If you are eligible in Phase 1 and you cannot find an appointment that meets your needs, you can pre-register for a priority appointment."

Most Virginians will be able to make their own appointments, but some local health districts will continue using pre-registration in order to manage the invitations to their clinics, Potter said.

People will be able to use the VaccineFinder tool to book an appointment for those clinics, but they will be directed to the VDH website, where they'll be asked to pre-register.

"We want to remind everyone that while we are transitioning to Phase 2, vaccine supply remains limited so it still may take some time to find an available appointment," Potter said. "We encourage everyone to keep trying, though, because getting the vaccine is how we will protect ourselves, our loved ones and our communities."

Of the three COVID-19 vaccines currently available, the Pfizer vaccine is the only one that has been approved for people 16 and 17, according to a release. The Johnson & Johnson and Modern vaccines have been approved for individuals 18 and older.

On Tuesday, Gov. Ralph Northam paused the use of the J&J vaccine due to blood clot concerns based on the recommendation of the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers of Disease Control.

"We are recommending a pause in the use of this vaccine out of an abundance of caution," Dr. Peter Marks of the FDA and Dr. Anne Schuchat of the CDC said in a joint statement.

As of Monday, more than 6.8 million doses of the single-dose vaccine have been administered in the United States, according to the FDA.

Virginia is providing free COVID-19 vaccinations, regardless of a person's health insurance or immigration status.

Help is available in English, Spanish, and more than 100 other languages. Video conferencing in American Sign Language is also available for anyone who needs it. Those using a videophone can call 877-VAX-IN-VA (877-829-4682) or they can go online and click the "ASL Now" button at vaccinate.virginia.gov.

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