San Francisco expands Covid-19 vaccination sites

San Francisco, Feb 6 Authorities in the US city of San Francisco announced that it has the infrastructure in place to administer at least 10,000 Covid-19 vaccines per day once the adequate supply is received.

This week, the city launched a new high-volume vaccination site at the Moscone Center; expanded inoculation access in the Bayview and Mission neighbourhoods; and also launched a new site with Safeway Pharmacy at the San Francisco State University, the authorities announced on Friday.

All sites are currently vaccinating health care workers and community members aged 65 and older, regardless of insurance status and following the state of California's prioritization plan, Xinhua news agency reported.

In addition to creating the infrastructure required to vaccinate people quickly and conveniently, the city has developed a new webpage for people who live and work in San Francisco to find vaccination sites and book appointments.

"Creating this network of vaccination locations has been a massive undertaking, with City staff, health care partners, and community organisations working around the clock to create these sites and make sure we're prepared to vaccinate people as quickly as possible," the city's Mayor London Breed said in a statement.

"We are ready to ramp up and vaccinate thousands of people per day now we just need the supply."

Meanwhile, Mary Ellen Carroll, Director of Department of Emergency Management of San Francisco, said: "The vaccine is one of the most critical tools we have in responding to the Covid-19 emergency.

"While we still need greater supply of the vaccine, the private-public partnerships that have come together to establish high-volume and community vaccination sites mark a significant turning point in our response and recovery from Covid-19."

The San Francisco County has so far reported a total of 32,119 confirmed coronavirus cases, with 345 deaths.

( With inputs from IANS )