It was under threat to close if it did not receive new COVID-19 vaccine doses, but the Alamodome vaccination site received a shipment of 10,000 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in time to schedule appointments for this week. The window of opportunity closed quickly, however.
At about 6 p.m., the City activated its text alert system for the first time to announce that registration was available for eligible residents looking to schedule a first-dose vaccination at the Alamodome. By about 6:25 p.m., the site once again reported that registration was “temporarily unavailable” and would return when more vaccine is received.
To receive future notifications from the vaccination sites operated by the City, University Health System, and WellMed, text VACCINE or VACUNA to 55000.
The City of San Antonio site has for weeks administered only second doses to those who had already received their first doses at the Alamodome, and Mayor Ron Nirenberg said the site would have to close if it did not receive more first doses. He and other local officials made requests for more vaccines to White House and state officials.
On Friday, Nirenberg confirmed that the City had been allotted thousands of first doses from the state, but because the shipment was in transit, officials did not know when they could begin scheduling appointments.
When more doses arrive, eligible residents, the groups in phases 1A and 1B of the vaccine rollout, can visit the City’s website to sign up or call 311 or 210-207-6000 and select option 8 to schedule their vaccinations. Phase 1A includes frontline medical professionals and nursing home residents while Phase 1B includes residents ages 65 or older and residents 18 or older who have a preexisting health condition.
