Less than two days before all Californians 16 and older become eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, San Francisco and Santa Clara county officials announced that anyone 16 and older who lives or works in their counties is now eligible to make a vaccine appointment.
In a press release, San Francisco Mayor London Breed's office directed newly eligible people to the city's website to schedule an appointment at different vaccination sites. The state's My Turn tool is also showing eligibility for 16+ San Franciscans.
Santa Clara County has also fully opened vaccine eligibility to all county residents and workers 16 and older, although the county was not yet showing that eligibility through My Turn. Newly eligible Santa Clara County residents and workers may instead make appointments through the county website. An increase in vaccine supply allowed county officials to "release tens of thousands of additional vaccine appointments over the remainder of this week," according to a Tuesday press release.
The state on Tuesday directed all counties to pause using the Johnson & Johnson vaccine based on guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration, which are examining a possible and rare side effect associated with only that vaccine.
State health officials said vaccine supply levels would not be affected by the pause because "less than 4% of our vaccine allocation this week is the Johnson & Johnson vaccine."