VA Puget Sound selected as one of 37 VA sites to receive initial doses of COVID-19 vaccine

VA Puget Sound was selected for its ability to vaccinate large numbers of people and store the vaccines at extremely cold temperatures.

In accordance with Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidance, VA Puget Sound will begin vaccinating health care personnel and Veterans in VA’s long-term health care facilities once the Food and Drug Administration issues an emergency use authorization for a vaccine. COVID-19 vaccine implementation will include an initial limited-supply phase followed by a general implementation phase, when large supplies of the vaccine will be available to Veterans who want to receive one. Our goal is to offer it to all Veterans and employees who want to be vaccinated. As more vaccine becomes available, we will coordinate systematic outreach to schedule appointments with eligible Veterans according to CDC and Veteran Health Administration national guidance.

“We are very excited to provide a vaccine that has the potential to help get COVID-19 under control when used alongside public health measures such as masking, physical distancing and frequent handwashing,” said VA Puget Sound Direct Michael Tadych.

Veterans seeking additional information should visit VHA’s national COVID-19 vaccine webpage.  

VA Puget Sound provides comprehensive care to more than 155,000 Veterans enrolled at one of its ten facilities in the Pacific Northwest (two divisions in Seattle and Tacoma; seven Community Based Outpatient Clinics in Bellevue, Chehalis, Federal Way, Mount Vernon, Port Angeles, North Seattle, Silverdale and South Sound; and the Community Resource and Referral Center). As the VA’s 5th largest research program, VA Puget Sound has research in virtually every major clinical department, including: TBI and multiple blast exposures; memory improvement and Alzheimer's Disease; PTSD and deployment health; Parkinson’s Disease, diabetes; cancer; substance abuse; lower limb prosthetics; genomics; and Health Services. Additionally, it has seven nationally recognized Centers of Excellence (in areas from limb-loss prevention and prosthetic engineering to primary care education and substance abuse treatment). For more information visit www.pugetsound.va.gov.

Tami Begasse, Public Affairs Officer

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