AppHealthCare accepting COVID-19 vaccine appointments for people 65 and older after Gov. Roy Cooper’s announcement

Roughly 47% of App State students and 85% of App State employees are fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

Emily Broyles, Reporter
January 14, 2021

People aged 65 and older are now eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper announced Thursday.

Today, NCDHHS told local health departments and providers that they can begin vaccinating all health care workers and adults 65 and older when they are ready.

Learn more about North Carolina’s vaccination process here: https://t.co/BpjHQdLh0b pic.twitter.com/4fACdp6qT5

— Governor Roy Cooper (@NC_Governor) January 14, 2021

This comes after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lowered its previously recommended age of 75 on Tuesday to speed up the vaccination process as cases rise across the country.

“This is the fastest way to protect the vulnerable and it is easier to allocate vaccines to people 65 and older and has enabled states to use much more diverse administration channels,” said Alex Azar, Health and Human Services secretary, in a news conference Tuesday.

North Carolina has seen 650,296 positive cases of COVID-19 as of Thursday morning, with 9,853 cases reported yesterday, according to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. There are 3,990 people hospitalized and 7,825 people have died.

In response to the governor’s announcement, AppHealthCare will follow the NCDHHS. “We don’t want the online form to be (a) barrier to anyone expressing their interest in a vaccine and getting their name on the list,” according to AppHealthCare’s press release.

The release states that AppHealthCare is experiencing “high call volumes” and pushes callers to be patient and leave a voicemail if not answered right away.

The health organization also encourages community members to be patient with the vaccine itself, as AppHealthCare has “limited quantities of the vaccine,” according to the release.

“We will continue to do everything we can to ensure (the) vaccine gets out to the community as quickly and efficiently as possible,” the release states.

Those who are 65 years old or older in Alleghany, Ashe and Watauga counties who want to receive the vaccine should complete AppHealthCare’s interest form on its website. Those who cannot answer the form online can contact AppHealthCare’s call center at (828) 795-1970. The center is open seven days a week.

People can learn more about North Carolina’s vaccine process by visiting https://covid19.ncdhhs.gov/vaccines.

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