Seniors 75 and older are not yet eligible to receive COVID-19 Vaccine

See answers to other frequently asked vaccine questions

Dec. 31, 2020. Reno/Sparks, NV – The Regional Information Center is reminding residents that the 75-and-older population is not yet eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine.

However, individuals who are 75 and older are now being added to the Tier 2 group of the State of Nevada’s COVID-19 Vaccine Playbook, which will be updated to account for this change soon, and we’re expecting to vaccinate the Tier-2 group in late January.

Washoe County is currently vaccinating those in the Tier-1 group, which includes front line medical workers, law enforcement and other medical personnel. Once most Tier-1 personnel in Washoe County are offered the COVID-19 vaccine, the Health District will transition to Tier 2. The State is working on an update to its COVID-19 Vaccine Playbook, which includes the addition of 75+ population to Tier 2, and it will be released soon.

See the list of current COVID-19 vaccine tiers here, which will include the 75+ population once the state unveils the updated version of the vaccine playbook.

Confusion on which tier the 75-and-older population fell into has led to an uptick in calls and emails to the Health District, which takes away from primary duties. There have been reports of people showing up to the Reno-Sparks Livestock Events Center unannounced to receive the vaccine who had to be turned away.

“We appreciate people being eager and excited to receive the COVID-19 vaccine as soon as possible,” said Kevin Dick, District Health Officer for Washoe County. “New information is flowing into us by the hour and we’re working long hours and weekends to be able to distribute it to more than 470,000 people in Washoe County. We ask the general public for patience at this time as we work with local, state and federal partners on this enormous logistical challenge ahead of us.”

The Health District has a list of Frequently Asked Questions on our website. Other common questions that are coming into our call center and email inboxes are as follows. 

How will I be notified when it’s my time to be vaccinated?

We’re working with Tier-1 employers to vaccinate their employees who fall into the Tier-1 category. A large portion of Tier 2 will be essential workers, and priority list of those essential workers will be developed by the State of Nevada with guidance from the federal government. Employers will be tasked with notifying employees of how to sign up for the vaccine and when it will occur. For the remainder in Tier 2, the Regional Information Center will make that updated information publicly accessible when it’s finalized and work with community partners to share the news with as many people as possible in Washoe County. The notification process for individuals that are 75 and older has not yet been finalized.  Pharmacies are expected to provide vaccinations for some of the Tier 2 workers and individuals age 75 and older.

Can I signup to receive an alert when I can get a vaccine?

The Regional Information Center will distribute public information when certain population groups are eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine. We ask that you be patient during this process and check for updates on our website, www.COVID19Washoe.com and with local news outlets.

How will you verify that people getting the vaccine are eligible?

The COVID-19 vaccine site has Nevada National Guard members at the entrance to check for personal identification and verify employment. People who are not eligible for the vaccine will be turned away.

For more information, go to our website. For more FAQs, go here.

The COVID-19 Regional Information Center is working together to deliver COVID-19 community updates in a unified manner. While press releases are only sent periodically for significant events, you can always get daily results on our website, https://covid19washoe.com/, our COVID-19 Dashboard or by following us on Twitter @COVID19Washoe. The entities include: City of Reno, City of Sparks, North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District, Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe, Regional Transportation Commission, REMSA, Reno Sparks Indian Colony, Reno Police Department, Reno Fire Department, Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District, University of Nevada, Reno, Washoe County, Washoe County Health District, Washoe County School District and Washoe County Sheriff’s Office. Also in the group are the area hospitals, Northern Nevada Medical Center, Renown Health and Saint Mary’s.