BARTOW, Fla. – The Florida Department of Health Polk County’s COVID-19 vaccine hotline will begin taking calls Friday morning at 8 a.m. from the Polk County Emergency Operations Center.
The phone line, (863) 298-7500, will be manned for the foreseeable future by staff from both the Florida Department of Health and Polk County Board of County Commissioners from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, starting tomorrow.
Employees staffing the hotline will register residents 65 years of age and older for a limited number of vaccine appointments scheduled for next week. Once those initial appointments are filled, callers 65 years old and older can be placed on a registration list for a future vaccine appointment, as additional vaccine becomes available.
“We look forward to opening our COVID-19 vaccine hotline to the residents of Polk County,” said Dr. Joy Jackson, director of the Florida Department of Health in Polk County. “Our hope is for residents 65 years of age and older to have an opportunity to provide us with their information so that we can get them scheduled for a vaccination appointment as they become available.”
Those who are eligible for the vaccine, 65 years old and older, may call the line to provide their information and ask questions of staff. The Department of Health is following Gov. Ron DeSantis’ protocol of putting seniors as a main priority for the initial rounds of vaccinations.
“Polk County’s Board of County Commissioners has partnered with the Florida Department of Health to help facilitate and expedite the vaccinations in our county,” said Polk County Commission Chairman Rick Wilson. “Due to the limited supply of vaccine, there will be a high demand from the public and we want to make sure we have the resources necessary to meet that demand.”
More than 5,400 individuals in Polk have received a COVID-19 vaccination so far. The Health Department received its first weekly allotment of vaccines Dec. 28.