By JAMES BELL
Hays Post
"We will start vaccinating people there on Tuesday," Kennedy said.
But with the limited number available, he is asking for patience.
"Patience is going to be the biggest thing going through this," Kennedy said.
In the meantime, he said it is important that residents sign up for the distribution on the Ellis County COVID-19 page, as all initial vaccines will be scheduled in advance and only given to those with an appointment.
"That's what people need to be doing right now," Kennedy said. "They need to figure out a way to get that form filled out."
When filling out the form, Kennedy said cellphone numbers are best, and anyone who can receive text messages is also encouraged to opt in to that service.
For now, the focus is getting the word out about the signup along with helping those who need it to fill out the form.
Anyone can fill out the form, and the department has offered to fill out forms for anyone that needs assistance.
Anyone requesting that assistance can call the department during regular hours at (785) 621-1812.
The department partnered with First Care, so Kennedy said emails will come from an email account tied to the clinic, but that is simply a function of the department using their scheduling software.
Along with First Care, HaysMed is also assisting the department in the distribution efforts, he said.
"Don't think it's spam. Don't ignore it," Kennedy said. "It is how you get registered and through the line for your vaccine."
He also asked those with an appointment to make sure they show up for their appointment and on time.
While Ellis County will only receive 300 vaccine doses to be distributed during the first week, Kennedy said the state will provide an update of vaccines on the way for the following week each Wednesday.
When the number of incoming doses has been received by the department, he said they will then work to prioritize the potential recipients and start making calls and texts to set up vaccination appointments.
He said the state plans to ship vaccines to the county on Mondays so vaccination efforts should begin each week on Tuesday, as long as Kansas has doses available for the county.
For the forseeable future, Kennedy said he expects to give out all of the received doses from the state within the week they are received.
As the number of vaccine doses comes into the county remains low, Kennedy said efforts will be made to get the vaccine to those most in danger from serious effects of the virus and will combine risk factors to make determinations as to who gets the first doses.
"We will just keep working our way down until, hopefully, we can get to the point to where anyone in Ellis County that wants this vaccine can receive it," he said.
As the limited vaccine does begin getting to area residents, Kennedy is asking the public for patience.
"We truly want to get this out the door as fast as possible ... but we just don't have enough vaccines," he said. "Patience and some leniency with us and leniency with your neighbors and helping each other out to help individuals get signed up and get on to that list so we can get the vaccine out. "