Beaufort, Jasper Co. seniors can register for COVID-19 vaccines starting Wednesday

A previous version of this story said that South Carolina residents could schedule an appointment through a new S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control website starting Wednesday, but DHEC has since clarified that the website will provide contact information for individual vaccine providers beginning Wednesday. People can contact those providers themselves using that information to schedule appointments.

Updated information can be found here: https://www.islandpacket.com/news/coronavirus/article248448130.html

South Carolina will allow people 70 or older — with or without underlying health conditions — to register for COVID-19 vaccine appointments beginning on Wednesday, the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control announced Monday.

Eligible residents in Beaufort and Jasper counties can find a DHEC vaccine location at the following links Wednesday: scdhec.gov/vaxlocator or http://bit.ly/DHECVaccineLocater or http://bit.ly/VaccineInformation

The website will provide contact information for residents, who then have to reach out to individual providers themselves to schedule an appointment.

People can also call the “DHEC Care Line” at (855) 472-3432 for assistance in signing up.

Beaufort Memorial, Hilton Head and Coastal Carolina hospitals are the only local medical centers that will initially accept appointments, according to the website.

DHEC originally said people 75 or older would be eligible for vaccines during Phase 1b of distribution, which was expected to begin in late January or early February.

Those plans have since changed.

Here’s what DHEC said residents should do starting Wednesday:

People who are 70 or older are now considered Phase 1a, but they cannot simply walk into a hospital to ask for a vaccine. All appointments must be scheduled, the agency said.

It was unclear as of about 2 p.m. Monday what time the website will display information Wednesday.

Residents will later have to provide a driver’s license or other form of ID to verify their age once arriving at an appointment. They will also get a vaccine card reminding them about their second shot (both the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines use a two-dose regimen).

Although the area’s three hospitals are the only health facilities listed as being open for now, other locations may accept appointments down the line: Doctors Care Hilton Head, Doctors Care Bluffton, Doctors Care Beaufort and Encompass Rehabilitation Hospital of Bluffton.

Statewide, seven “major hospitals,” seven DHEC sites, a mobile clinic and 12 Doctors Care locations were part of the program as of Monday. Another 50 locations are expected to join the initiative next week.

DHEC on Monday said its plan was updated because S.C. officials are confident the majority of people in the original Phase 1a have been inoculated or recently signed up for vaccines.

Phase 1a, which prioritizes health care workers and long-term care residents, includes an estimated 350,000 people statewide, according to Stephen White, DHEC’s director of immunizations.

“Because we’ve seen a dramatic acceleration in vaccine usage and appointments in the last week, we have decided to speed things up again,” Gov. Henry McMaster wrote in a statement Monday. “We know that those 70 and older are at the greatest risk of dying from COVID-19. Making sure they have expedited access to the vaccine will help save lives.”

Dr. Brannon Traxler, DHEC’s interim director of public health, in a Monday statement added that the COVID-19 mortality rate for those 70 or older in South Carolina is roughly 655 deaths per 100,000 people.

In comparison, the mortality rate for those under 70 is about 37 coronavirus deaths per 100,000 people, Traxler wote.

More than 67% of COVID-19 deaths in the state since last March have been recorded among those 70 or older, according to DHEC.

The state’s Monday announcement follows days of changes to the health agency’s vaccine rollout.

DHEC initially planned to allow people 75 or older to get vaccinated during Phase 1b of distribution after 70% of those eligible in Phase 1a were vaccinated.

McMaster last Tuesday, though, criticized the state’s rollout, saying it was too slow. He said South Carolina had set a “hard deadline” of Friday to complete Phase 1a vaccinations or sign ups.

Traxler during a briefing with reporters last week said that, depending on Phase 1a demand, DHEC might opt to continue Phase 1a after Friday or could switch immediately to Phase 1b.

She added, though, that DHEC at the time still expected Phase 1a to continue into late January or early February, appearing to suggest that the Friday deadline was simply an attempt to encourage Phase 1a appointments.

The vaccine website says seniors now qualify for Phase 1a.

An estimated 627,800 residents statewide are 70 or older, according to DHEC, although many have already received doses during Phase 1a.

This story was originally published January 11, 2021 at 12:35 PM.

Sam Ogozalek

The Island Packet

843-900-6372

Sam Ogozalek is a reporter at The Island Packet covering COVID-19 recovery efforts. He also is a Report for America corps member. He recently graduated from Syracuse University and has written for the Tampa Bay Times, The Buffalo News and the Naples Daily News.