Educators and child care providers in Los Angeles County will become eligible to receive COVID-19 vaccines starting Monday.
But if you’re an educator or child care provider hoping to set up an appointment, be prepared for things to move slowly: The L.A. County Department of Public Health estimates that about 691,000 people in the education and childcare sector will be eligible to receive a vaccine – and the supply is very limited.
L.A. County receives about 200,000 vaccines a week. Next week health officials are allocating about 11% of these doses to education and child care workers.
Based on the first allocation of doses, county health officials said Friday that the ambitious vaccination goals set by leaders of the L.A. Unified School District could be feasible, if supplies stay consistent.
Before reopening elementary school campuses, LAUSD Superintendent Austin Beutner has said he wants 25,000 district staff vaccinated.
Next week, nearly 60,000 vaccine doses will be available to educators, with about half of those set aside for the education sector exclusively. L.A. Unified is supposed to receive 40% of the doses for educators, but the district’s specific allotment has not yet been announced.
Speaking with reporters on Friday, medical epidemiologist Dr. Naman Shah from the L.A. County Department of Public Health was optimistic that Beutner’s goal could be met.
“I think it really depends on our allocations,” Shah said in a press conference. “If our allocations hold steady, I think we’ll certainly be able to complete that number in terms of first doses.”
It would take a full month after the first dose for educators to receive the second shot and be fully protected.
“The week-to-week uncertainty makes planning very difficult,” Shah conceded.
Superintendent Debra Duardo of the L.A. County Office of Education said her staff, along with officials from the county Department of Public Health, are doing their best to ensure the equitable distribution of vaccines.
“We are eventually going to get every single teacher and employee vaccinated,” Duardo told LAist. “It’s going to take a little bit of time and we’re going to need some patience.”
The dose allocation per district is based on several factors: population, community COVID-19 case rates, poverty level and the number of staff already working in person.
As the second-largest school district in the nation, with about 465,000 students enrolled and one of the highest concentrations of low-income students in the state, LAUSD is getting more vaccines per staff member than smaller, more affluent districts. Meeting the district’s expectations for staff vaccinations will ultimately depend on dose availability.
HOW TO GET VACCINATED
If you are a teacher or child care provider, here’s how to prepare.
You will need to bring:
- A picture ID
- Proof that you live or work in the county or city where you are getting vaccinated
- Documentation to prove your employment in the education or child care sector
Because information on what's required is still evolving, a best practice would be to bring multiple forms of documentation with you as backup.
Some examples of documentation include:
- Center-based early childhood educators (licensed): a copy of State of California license for center; badge; pay stub; letter from your employer
- Family child care homes (licensed): a copy of State of California license for center
- Family, friends, and neighbors (FFN) providing subsidized care (license exempt): Copy of attendance sheet or invoice
- Educators: Work shift schedule including your name; pay stub; letter from your employer
How to stay in the loop:
To make sure that doses go directly to educators and child care providers who need it, some vaccine sites will be invitation-only. Others can sign up through the My Turn system, their health care provider, or their city or county’s vaccination site.
Multiple agencies will be sending out information. If you are an L.A. County child care provider and have a profile on the CA ECE Workforce Registry, you should receive notification. Child care providers can also contact their local resource and referral agency.
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