Rockwall County Judge David Sweet is happy to announce that all 12 long-term care facilities have now received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. All residents, staff, and caregivers who wanted to participate had the opportunity to receive the vaccine. From the beginning of the pandemic, a high local priority has been to ensure the health and safety of the most vulnerable populations in Rockwall County. The federal Pharmacy Partnership for Long-Term Care Program launched nationally on December 21, 2020, which is an effort to facilitate on-site vaccinations at more than 75,000 enrolled long-term care facilities across the U.S.
“Our efforts turn now to the other senior living facilities in our county that didn’t qualify for the federal Pharmacy Program since they were not skilled nursing centers. We want to ensure residents and caregivers in all senior living facilities have the same protection against COVID-19,” Sweet said. At this point, the State has not allocated any vaccines to local providers that the county has partnered with who will facilitate vaccinations for this group of seniors.
All long-term care facilities’ status is posted to the Rockwall County COVID-19 Dashboard that can be accessed through the banner at the top of the Rockwall County website. Use the arrows below the Total Case Map to scroll to the Impacted Long-Term Care Facilities section. Other pertinent information on the dashboard includes COVID-19 case counts, hospital COVID-19 metrics, 14-day positivity rate, and links to vaccine information, IDS dashboards, and testing information. Judge Sweet and the Rockwall County Office of Emergency Management are working closely to oversee the process of mass vaccinations for the different 1B tiers outlined by the CDC and the State of Texas. Several key partners, including each city within the county, will coordinate the effort. The county will release details as soon as they are available.
