On Monday, February 8, UC San Diego Health will open a second COVID-19 vaccination station at the RIMAC Center on campus. The new site will primarily serve vaccination-eligible UC San Diego Health patients and essential campus workers.
We are preparing to administer vaccines as quickly as possible. Your patience is greatly appreciated while these plans continue to develop and evolve due to changing public health conditions across our region, state and nation.
Plans to prioritize vaccinations for essential campus workers are well underway, led by a committee of our own physicians, public health experts, and campus faculty. All decisions specific to who on campus is eligible to receive the vaccine and when they will be scheduled are being driven by criteria and guidance from the California Department of Public Health, the County of San Diego, and other health agencies as well as vaccine availability.
It is important to note that UC San Diego does not control allocation of the vaccines. UC San Diego Health is provided a weekly allocation from the State and County. These allocations are based upon nationwide vaccine availability and CDC guidelines, which are managing short supply chains that may experience fluctuations.
With the opening of the RIMAC vaccination site, UC San Diego Health is prepared to administer vaccines to our eligible essential campus workers in addition to patients when San Diego County permits it and we are provided sufficient allocation of vaccines.
Employees under the age of 65 are not yet eligible to receive the vaccine. At this time, eligible categories include only health care workers and long-term care residents under Phase 1A and persons age 65 and older. You can review the county’s phased approach online.
Vaccinations for those at risk of exposure at work in the following sectors: education and childcare, emergency services and food and agriculture are not yet permitted by the County and are in the next group of eligible individuals.
You will be notified when the vaccine is available for you. UC San Diego Health patients and eligible essential campus staff will receive invitations to schedule their vaccination appointment through the MyUCSDChart electronic medical record system, and email notifications will be sent with instructions on how to schedule your appointment online. All vaccinations are by appointment only.
Tritons Unite to Help the Community
UC San Diego Health has administered more vaccines than any other health provider in the state, providing more than 100,000 vaccinations since mid-January, most of which have gone to people in specific categories, such as essential health care workers and people 65 and over.
Despite enormous challenges, UC San Diego is demonstrating its commitment to operational excellence and community service. We are proud of UC San Diego Health’s leadership and our front-line health workers who continue to vaccinate our community during this critical time and who have provided excellent patient care throughout the pandemic. We are also grateful to the many student, faculty and staff volunteers who have helped process visitors at the Petco Park Superstation, and to the thousands who have signed up to help at our new RIMAC site.
We are optimistic and encouraged that the vaccine is rolling out in our community and nationwide. We encourage you to get vaccinated when you are invited to do so in order to protect the health and well-being of our campus community and our regional population.
Even with this great news, we must continue the practices that we know help keep our campus community safe. Wear masks, wash hands often and avoid unmasked gatherings. Complete your daily screenings, and for those of you on campus, please test weekly.
Thank you for your continued cooperation and support.
