Appointments for state-run COVID-19 vaccination sites to open each Friday

PHOENIX — Additional appointments for the four state-run COVID-19 vaccination sites will open each Friday for the following week, the state health department announced Wednesday.

That will start Friday at 11 a.m. for the following week of March 22 to March 28, the Arizona Department of Health Services said in a press release.

Approximately 37,000 appointments for that week will be available at the State Farm Stadium site in Glendale, along with 16,000 at Phoenix Municipal Stadium, 14,000 at Chandler-Gilbert Community College and 12,000 at the University of Arizona in Tucson.

The state health department will announce the number of appointments available for the following week every Wednesday on Facebook and Twitter.

Those 55 and older can register online or by calling 1-844-542-8201 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. seven days a week.

Additional appointments could be made available throughout the week due to cancellations or no-shows, according to the release.

“Arizonans are eager to get the vaccine, and we are working to quickly expand access to appointments to meet that demand,” Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey said in the release.

“The additional appointments will get more Arizonans vaccinated while helping to protect our communities and taking us one step closer to normalcy.”

Under the state health department’s new hybrid vaccine distribution plan, the state-run sites are now doling out shots by age, while counties are left in charge of determining how to vaccinate other priority groups.

Younger age groups will gain eligibility for the vaccine in waves over the next two months.

Arizona passed one million people who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 on Tuesday, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services dashboard.

Overall, 2.6 million vaccine doses have been administered and 23.1% of Arizona’s population have received at least one COVID-19 vaccination.

Follow @TaDunham