Kerr County to receive additional COVID-19 vaccines next week

Kerr County will be receiving 1,200 vaccines next week, according to state health officials. Kerrville Fire Chief Eric Maloney and Kerr County Emergency Management Coordinator Dub Thomas are working in cooperation with Peterson Health, the Kerrville H-E-B, and others in order to get vaccines out to Tier 1A medical workers first, then any remaining doses to Tier 1B individuals (persons 65 years of age and older, individuals with compromised health over 16 years old, and teachers).

For several weeks now, Peterson Health, the City of Kerrville, and Kerr County leaders have been reaching out to state legislators and state health organizations to inquire about why Kerr County is not receiving more vaccines given its proven capability to organize mass vaccination clinics and the fact that Kerrville is the largest medical and population center in the Hill Country.

Maloney said, “We are relieved and thankful to receive news from state officials that we will be receiving a total of 1,200 vaccines in Kerr County next week.”

For more information or questions about the vaccine and how it will be distributed locally, call (830) 315-5900, Monday-Friday from 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. In the meantime, the county encourages the community to register for CodeRed to receive vaccine and other emergency management notifications. Links are available on the Kerr County website as well as the City of Kerrville website.

Kerr County residents can also check availability of vaccines in Fredericksburg for the coming week. Their phone line and registration link will open when vaccine registration becomes available. To register, visit www.HillCountryCovid.care and click on “Vaccine Registration” or call (830) 990-6648.

The Kerrville VA Medical Center has also been vaccinating veterans with an “assignment” in Kerrville who are 65 years of age and older. To make an appointment, veterans can contact the southwest VA call center at (877) 537-7348.

There are other providers and locations that may have the COVID-19 vaccine now and the public can view them at https://tdem.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html.

Other helpful resources and sites include the Texas Dept. of State Health Services at www.dshs.state.tx.us/coronavirus/immunice/vaccine.

Five days of free COVID-19 testing will be offered beginning Monday, February 1-5, at the Hill Country Youth Event Center, 3785 TX27, in Kerrville, from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. each day. No symptoms, doctor’s orders or appointments are required for this drive-thru event in which participants will be tested using a lower-nasal swab. Results can be expected within three days.

As of January 29, Kerr County is reporting 278 active COVID-19 cases, 72 official fatalities and 24 patients hospitalized at Peterson Regional Medical Center due to virus related complications.

As of January 29, Gillespie County is reporting 150 active cases of the novel coronavirus, 7 patients currently hospitalized due to COVID-19 at Hill Country Memorial Hospital and 41 virus related deaths as reported by DSHS.