Tanner Health System is now just shy of administering 5,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.
As of Friday, Jan. 22, the health system had administered 4,968 doses of the vaccine — and almost half of them have gone into the arms of the public.
More than 2,300 doses have been administered to the public, age 65 and older, in accordance with Georgia Department of Public Health guidelines.
Tanner also learned this week that the state had granted the health system status as a mass vaccination site, which should enable the health system to receive more doses of the vaccine.
Tanner began rolling out the vaccine in late December, the same day the first doses arrived. Front-line healthcare staff were the first to receive the vaccine due to their high risk of exposure to the virus. Many have already received their second dose.
The organization is now rolling out the vaccine to patients who are age 65 and older. Tanner is using randomized lists of email addresses from patient records to send invitations to patients. The emailed invitations include a unique link to register for an appointment at one of Tanner’s vaccination clinics.
“Expediting vaccination against COVID-19 is extremely important to us,” said Loy Howard, president and CEO of Tanner. “It’s a vital part of our mission to preserve the health of the communities we serve. We hope we can begin receiving more vaccine from the state so we can protect more people.”
The health system is planning vaccination clinics as doses of the vaccine arrive. The amount of vaccine received determines how many appointments Tanner can make available.
Tanner is receiving both the vaccines that have received emergency use authorization from the Food and Drug Administration, from biotech firms Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech. Both vaccines require two doses to achieve 95% effectiveness.
Tanner has implemented appointment-only COVID-19 clinics. So far, the health system has hosted these clinics at its hospitals in Carrollton and Villa Rica, as well as at the Mill Town Music Hall in Bremen. The health system is exploring opportunities with other regional partners, including churches, to serve as venues for future vaccination clinics.
“We said early on that we intend to be a regional leader in COVID-19 vaccinations, and we’re committed to that goal,” said Howard. “Along with wearing masks, social distancing and avoiding gatherings, widespread vaccination is key to beating this pandemic.”
The health system has also established an online form for patients and caregivers to provide their information to be signed up for vital COVID-19 information and to request an appointment. The site is at
tanner.org/shotsignup. Email addresses provided through this site will be entered into Tanner’s randomized invitations.
More information about Tanner’s COVID-19 vaccination efforts can be found at
tanner.org/vaccine.