More COVID-19 vaccine hub locations added in North Texas and across the state

Demand strong for COVID-19 vaccine in North Texas

More vaccine hubs will open in North Texas as there were once again long lines at some distribution sites on Sunday.

FORT WORTH, Texas - The Texas Department of State Health Services added nearly 50 more vaccine hub locations across the state.

In North Texas, counties are trying to keep up with the high demand.

Tens of thousands of people are on waiting lists as a steady flow of doses continue to come in.

At 4 a.m. Sunday, hundreds were already waiting in line at Parkland Hospital in Dallas.

A show of the desire to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

As counties enter another week of distribution, wait lists grow larger.

"Last week, Texas as an entire state received about 195,000 vaccines. We have over 300,000 registered in Tarrant County alone," Tarrant County Judge Glen Whitley said.

Moderna COVID-19 vaccine

Tarrant County vaccine hubs have given about 50,000 COVID-19 vaccine shots.

In Dallas County, 12,000 people were vaccinated last week.

There has been a partnership between hospitals, fire departments, and county health departments to tackle the large group considered, 1B, which is anyone 65 and older or people with chronic health conditions.

"We are probably somewhere in the neighborhood of 400,000-500,000 people who would qualify under 1B, if not more," Whitley explained.

On top of vaccinating Tarrant County residents, Whitley opened their supply to 10 neighboring counties, like Johnson, Ellis, and Parker.

"What I hope what we can do is in the next couple weeks is train teams that could go out, and we could separate their citizens, send that out to them, and let them help us," Whitely said.

While the population is greater in North Texas than some other parts of the state, the state health department is trying to make sure all counties in Texas get doses.

The allotment continues to fluctuate in the Metroplex.

Patience is the key word during distribution, and people are asked to continue taking COVID-19 safety precautions.

"The sheer volume of what we are undertaking, means we are going to have to have a little patience," Whitley said. "Stay away from crowds, when you get with crowds, you just don't know where everyone has been and you need to be careful."

Pharmacies continue to work with nursing homes to provide vaccinations for workers and residents in our area.