Here’s who’s eligible for the coronavirus vaccine in Utah

On Feb. 4, Utah reached an important milestone in the fight against COVID-19: We officially administered more vaccine doses than the number of people who have tested positive for COVID-19. 

In other good news: The federal government announced it will increase vaccine allocation by 5%. That means Utah will get a weekly allocation of 42,000 doses a week. And all Pfizer vaccination kits will now ship with the equipment needed to extract a 6th dose — that’s equivalent to a 20% increase in vaccines.

The Pfizer, Moderna, and the upcoming Johnson & Johnson vaccines are safe and effective, and we want all Utahns to understand when they are eligible to receive them. In case you missed our live COVID-19 briefing this week, here’s what you need to know.

Currently eligible for the vaccine

As of today, health care workers, long-term care facility staff and residents, first responders, people who are 70 and older, K-12 teachers and school staff in Utah are eligible for the coronavirus vaccine.

Who will be eligible for the vaccine on March 1

On March 1, Utahns ages 65 and older will be eligible to receive the coronavirus vaccine.

Utahns who are 18 years old or older with the following medical conditions will also be eligible for the coronavirus vaccine on March 1:

• Solid organ transplant recipients
• Certain cancers 
• Immunocompromised state (weakened immune system) from blood, bone marrow, or organ transplant; HIV; use of corticosteroids long-term; or use of other immune weakening medicines long-term
• Severe kidney disease on dialysis or with stage 4 or 5 chronic kidney disease
• Uncontrolled diabetes
• Severe obesity
• Chronic liver disease including chronic hepatitis B or C
• Chronic heart disease (not hypertension)
• Severe chronic respiratory disease (other than asthma)
• Neurologic conditions that impair respiratory function, including Down’s Syndrome, multiple sclerosis, Parkinsons’s disease, cerebral palsy, quadriplegia or hemiplegia,
• Stroke and dementia (Alzheimer’s, vascular, frontotemporal)
• Asplenia including splenectomy or a spleen dysfunction, including sickle cell disease

A timeline for other eligibility groups can be found here.

How to make your vaccine appointment

If you are a health care worker, long-term care facility staff member or resident, first responder, 70 or older, or a K-12 teacher or staff, contact your local health department or school district to schedule your vaccination.

If you are between the ages of 65 and 69, or are 18 years or older with one of the aforementioned medical conditions, contact your local health department on or after March 1 to schedule your vaccination. You will not be able to schedule an appointment before March 1.

Please remember that demand for the COVID-19 vaccine is high and that all local health departments are experiencing a high volume of calls and website traffic. We can only distribute as many vaccines as we receive each week, and appointments are filling up quickly. Everyone who wants the vaccine will get it over time.

We will continue to provide updates as they become available.

If you have any questions about coronavirus symptoms, testing or vaccines, please visit coronavirus.utah.gov or call 1.800.456.7707.

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