(Des Moines) At Wednesday’s press conference, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds announced that 27-percent of Iowa’s population had received a vaccination that ranks tenth in the nation, and 13-percent of Iowa’s population has been fully vaccinated, which ranks 27th in the country.
Reynolds projects that 70-percent of the state’s first responders, childcare providers, and K-12 teachers have received at least one dose, and more than 90-percent of Iowa’s long-term residents will have completed their second dose by the end of the month. Additionally, almost 94-percent of Iowans 65 and older have received at least one dose of the vaccine. “Even with that impressive vaccination rate amongst older Iowan, we know that for some, scheduling online has been a barrier for getting vaccinated,” said Reynolds.
That barrier is now being addressed with the new call service. Iowans 65-years of age and older can now call 211 and speak with a vaccine navigator. The person on the other end of the line will take their information and schedule an appointment with a Hy Vee Pharmacy. The call center also has multi-lingual care navigators on staff, plus access to translation services that cover 240 languages.
“The program that started on Tuesday on the first day received 1,600 calls and scheduled 1,110 appointments for older Iowans that hadn’t been able to get one until now,” said Reynolds.
Hy Vee is setting up clinics in Des Moines and Cedar Rapids due to the vaccine’s demand. Reynolds says they will continue to access the program and extend it to more Iowans who struggle with scheduling appointments due to technology or language barriers.
