VA to begin COVID-19 vaccinations at 128 additional sites

WASHINGTON — The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) will begin COVID-19 vaccinations this week at 128 additional sites using the Moderna and Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines.  

On December 18, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an Emergency Use Authorization of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, which is the second COVID-19 vaccine to be authorized.

“Having a second COVID-19 vaccine will enable us to reach more facilities and vaccinate more health care personnel and Veterans in additional parts of the country,” said VA Secretary Robert L. Wilkie. “We continue to implement our COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Plan and are grateful to be one step closer to seeing the end of this pandemic.”  

Per Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommendations, VA will continue to vaccinate health care personnel, as well as community living center and spinal cord unit residents. As vaccine supplies increase, VA’s ultimate goal is to offer COVID-19 vaccinations to all Veterans and employees who want to be vaccinated.

113 VA Medical Centers (VAMCs) and outpatient clinics will receive limited Moderna COVID-19 vaccine supplies this week. They include:

Alabama

Central Alabama (Montgomery) VA Health Care System

Tuscaloosa VA Medical Center

Alaska

Alaska (Anchorage) VA Health Care System

Arizona

Northern Arizona (Prescott) VA Health Care System

Southern Arizona (Tucson) VA Health Care System

Arkansas

Veterans Health Care System of the Ozarks (Fayetteville)

Central Arkansas (North Little Rock) Veterans Health Care System

California

Central California (Fresno) VA Health Care System

Northern California (Mather) VA Health Care System

San Francisco VA Medical Center

Long Beach VA Health Care System

Loma Linda VA Health Care System

San Diego VA Health Care System

Colorado

Grand Junction VA Medical Center

Delaware

Wilmington VA Medical Center

Florida

Lee County VA Health Care Center

Jacksonville VA Outpatient Clinic

Sergeant Ernest I. “Boots” Thomas (Tallahassee) VA Outpatient Clinic

The Villages VA Outpatient Clinic

New Port Richey VA Outpatient Clinic

William V. Chappell, Jr. (Daytona Beach) VA Outpatient Clinic

William “Bill” Kling (Sunrise) VA Outpatient Clinic

South Hillsborough (Riverview) VA Outpatient Clinic

Viera VA Outpatient Clinic

Georgia

Atlanta VA Medical Center

Carl Vinson (Dublin) VA Medical Center

Hawaii

Pacific Islands (Honolulu) VA Health Care System

Idaho

Boise VA Medical Center

Illinois

Capt. James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center (North Chicago)

Jesse Brown (Chicago) VA Medical Center

Iliana (Danville) VA Health Care System

Marion VA Medical Center

Indiana

Indianapolis VA Medical Center

Marion VA Medical Center

Iowa

Central Iowa (Des Moines) VA Health Care System

Iowa City VA Health Care System

Kansas

Dwight D. Eisenhower (Leavenworth) VA Medical Center

Colmery-O’Neil (Topeka) VA Medical Center

Robert J. Dole (Wichita) VA Medical Center

Kentucky

Louisville VA Medical Center

Louisiana

Alexandria (Pineville) VA Medical Center

Overton Brooks (Shreveport) VA Medical Center

Maine

Maine (Augusta) VA Health Care System

Massachusetts

Boston (Jamaica Plain) VA Health Care System

Northampton (Leeds) VA Medical Center

Michigan

Battle Creek VA Medical Center

Detroit VA Medical Center

Saginaw VA Medical Center

Iron Mountain VA Medical Center

Minnesota

St. Cloud VA Medical Center

Mississippi

G.V. (Sonny) Montgomery (Jackson) VA Medical Center

Gulf Coast (Biloxi) VA Health Care System

Missouri

Poplar Bluff VA Medical Center

Kansas City VA Medical Center

Montana

Montana (Fort Harrison) VA Health Care System

Nevada

Sierra Nevada (Reno) VA Health Care System

New Hampshire

Manchester VA Medical Center

New Jersey

Lyons VA Medical Center

New York

James J. Peters Bronx VA Medical Center

Canandaigua VA Medical Center

Syracuse VA Medical Center

Albany VA Medical Center

Castle Point (Wappingers Falls) VA Medical Center

Northport VA Medical Center

North Carolina

Asheville VA Medical Center

South Charlotte VA Health Care Center

Fayetteville VA Medical Center

Raeford Road (Fayetteville) VA Outpatient Clinic

Greenville VA Health Care Center

Kernersville VA Health Care Center

Wilmington VA Health Care Center

North Dakota

Fargo VA Medical Center

Ohio

Chillicothe VA Medical Center

Cincinnati VA Medical Center

Dayton VA Medical Center

Columbus VA Ambulatory Care Center

Oklahoma

Eastern Oklahoma (Muskogee) VA Health Care System

Oregon

Roseburg VA Health Care System

Southern Oregon Rehabilitation Center & Clinics (White City)

Pennsylvania

Altoona VA Medical Center

Butler VA Medical Center

Coatesville VA Medical Center

Erie VA Medical Center

Lebanon VA Medical Center

Wilkes-Barre VA Medical Center

Puerto Rico

Mayaguez VA Outpatient Clinic

Euripides Rubio (Ponce) VA Outpatient Clinic

Rhode Island

Providence VA Medical Center

South Carolina

Charleston VA Medical Center

Columbia VA Medical Center

South Dakota

Sioux Falls VA Medical Center

Black Hills (Fort Meade) VA Health Care System

Tennessee

Tennessee Valley (Murfreesboro) VA Health Care System

Mountain Home VA Health Care System

Texas

Amarillo (West Amarillo) VA Health Care System

West Texas (Big Spring) VA Health Care System

Central Texas (Temple) VA Health Care System

Texas Valley Coastal (Harlingen) VA Health Care System

El Paso VA Health Care System

Utah

Salt Lake City VA Health Care System

Vermont

White River Junction VA Medical Center

Virginia

Hampton VA Medical Center

Salem VA Medical Center

Washington

Spokane VA Medical Center

Walla Walla VA Medical Center

West Virginia

Beckley VA Medical Center

Clarksburg VA Medical Center

Huntington VA Medical Center

Martinsburg VA Medical Center

Wisconsin

Madison VA Hospital

Tomah VA Medical Center

Wyoming

Cheyenne VA Medical Center

Sheridan VA Medical Center

Sites were identified based on need for the vaccine according to CDC’s 1a prioritization after confirming they could appropriately store the vaccine at -20^?C. Since the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine remains stable in regular refrigeration, VA expects to distribute it to more facilities when supplies are available.

The Moderna COVID-19 vaccine was 94 percent effective in preventing COVID-19 disease based on scientific data presented at FDA’s Vaccines and Related Biologics Advisory Committee on December 17. The vaccine is administered in two doses, 28 days apart. The side effects appear similar to those of other vaccines and are short-lived.

Thirty-seven medical centers began offering the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine to eligible health care personnel and Veterans Dec 14. Additionally, VA is scheduled to receive another allocation of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine this week. Fifteen VA facilities plan to start administering the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine after they receive their allocations. They are:

Palo Alto (Livermore) VA Medical Center

Palo Alto (Menlo Park) VA Medical Center

Bay Pines (FL) VA Health Care System

Miami (FL) VA Health Care System

West Palm Beach (FL) VA Health Care System

James A. Haley (Tampa, FL) Veterans Hospital

North Florida/South Georgia (Gainesville, FL) Health Care System

Lake Baldwin (Orlando, FL) VA Outpatient Clinic

Lake City (FL) VA Medical Center

Perry Point (MD) VA Medical Center

St. Louis (Jefferson Barracks, MO) VA Health Care System

New York Harbor (Brooklyn Campus) Health Care System

Salisbury (NC) VA Medical Center

Kerrville (TX) VA Hospital

American Lake (Tacoma, WA) VA Medical Center

As vaccines become available, VA care teams will reach out to eligible Veterans to schedule vaccinations. There is no need to preregister or come to a facility to sign up.

Veterans can get up-to-date information and sign up to receive regular updates on VA’s COVID-19 vaccine webpage.