New age group and zip codes added to vaccine eligibility
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) – The Ocean State is one week away from opening up vaccinations to most of the public. On April 19th, anyone 16 or older will be eligible to sign up for a vaccine appointment.
Until then, on Monday, eligibility expanded even more adding new zip codes and those 40 to 49 years old to the mix.
“I’m 43 and I live here in Johnston,” resident Beth Weber-Kraus said.
Weber-Kraus is now eligible for the vaccine on two fronts: she’s in the 40 to 49 age group and lives in one of the six newly added hard-hit zip codes.
Those zip codes include: West Warwick (02893), Providence, (02906) & (02910), Cranston (02920), North Providence (02911), East Providence (02914), and Johnston (02919).
Weber-Kraus says she’s been really worried about COVID-19 and has been waiting for the vaccine so she can get out and do things again.
“It was the first time we went out to dinner in over a year,” Weber-Kraus said. “So, I think it would just be nice to be able to go out in public. We used to go everywhere with my kids, the zoo and museums. We haven’t done any of that.”
With the shot, most Rhode Islanders will be able to safely go out again. But for those adults already eligible who haven’t been able to secure an appointment, they’re worried after this week, it may get competitive.
“I said, wow, it’s going from 40+ to 16+, so I’m sure there’s going to be a rush on it,” North Providence resident Ray Vicario said.
Vicario’s mom is 67-years-old and was struggling to get an appointment.
“If you scroll through those pages all you see if no appointments available, none available and I didn’t know what to do,” Vicario said.
He says he rushed and put her name on the vaccine notification list, who got back a few days later with an appointment scheduled for April 20th.
“More of a relief that we finally got her to say, listen let’s do this instead of staying hunkered down in your little apartment,” Vicario said. “My wife and myself, we’re certainly relieved.”
Anyone currently eligible will have two more chances to register on the state-run site before appointments open to the public. Those appointments will be released Tuesday at 9:00 a.m. and Friday at 5:00 p.m. People can also register for a vaccine appointment through local pharmacies like CVS and Walgreens.
