Florida Department of Health and Lee County Government announce new vaccination site and launch reservation system
Fort Myers, FL, Jan. 7, 2021 – Tidal Basin, the state’s call-center vendor for COVID-19 vaccinations for seniors and front-line medical workers, earlier this week captured more than 10,000 phone calls in 11 minutes when its new reservation line opened. The Florida Department of Health-Lee (FDOH) and Lee County today have announced that next Tuesday and Wednesday’s allocation of vaccinations at the current site will be used for those additional callers, most of whom now have been pre-registered by the vendor.
The phone line for reservations is currently closed and remains closed; residents are asked to not dial the call center. The state and county will announce when additional vaccine doses are available and the line reopens. Visit
www.leegov.com/vaccine.
Tidal Basin will begin placing calls to schedule the pre-registered slots beginning this afternoon through Monday. Not every pre-registered individual will receive a scheduling call today. Shots will be administered between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday, Jan. 12 and 13.
DOH-Lee anticipates administering about 4,000 doses during those two days at the current site, which is east of Interstate 75 off Daniels Parkway. It’s the site of the old airport terminal parking lot off Paul J. Doherty Parkway.
The site has proved a successful solution to vaccinating thousands of people 65 and older without an unnecessary wait. Traffic to and from the site is flowing; parking is ample; people with appointments are not experiencing delays. Public transportation is available to the site.
By close of business today, more than 11,000 individuals will have been vaccinated at Lee County sites. This total does not include medical workers vaccinated at separate sites by the Florida Department of Health-Lee or vaccinations issued by other entities such as Lee Health.
FDOH-Lee and the county soon will announce information about the second dose of the vaccine and how scheduling will be handled.
The state and county have requested that Tidal Basin stand up a help line or call center for pre-registered people who have questions. Details will be announced when they become available at
www.leegov.com/vaccine.
As COVID-19 vaccine distribution continues, the Lee County Sheriff’s Office advises to be aware of emerging fraud schemes, such as:
• Calls asking to pay out of pocket to get the vaccine.
• Calls asking to pay to put your name on a vaccine waiting list or to get early access.
• Advertisements for vaccines through social media platforms, email, telephone calls, online or from unsolicited/unknown sources.
• Marketers offering to sell or ship doses of the vaccine for payment.
• Requests from someone unknown to an individual asking for a social security number, bank account information or credit card information.
Lee County residents who believe they have been the victim of COVID-19 fraud can report it to:
• Lee County Sheriff’s Office fraud line – 258-3292
• HHS-OIG Hotline: 1-800-HHS-TIPS or log on to tips.hhs.gov
• FBI Hotline: 1-800-CALL-FBI
• CMS/Medicare Hotline: 1-800-MEDICARE
Fort Myers, FL, Jan. 4, 2021 – The 5,000 doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine available this week were spoken for within minutes of the opening of reservations on Monday by the Florida Department of Health and Lee County.
Initial analytics show that within the first 30 minutes of the phone line going live, there was an average of 50,000 calls per minute, with a peak call volume of 84,000 calls per minute.
Additional doses will be available soon, and the reservation call line will reopen at that time. Callers who are on hold or were given the option to receive a call-back – and who left their number – are continuing to be processed.
Lee County Commissioner Brian Hamman said he understands that people are frustrated that they could not secure an appointment, but with a population of more than 200,000 people age 65 and older in Lee County it is not a surprise that demand exceeded supply.
“Here is the good news: More vaccine doses will be coming to Lee County,” Hamman said.
Dan Craig, CEO of Tidal Basin, the vendor providing the call center, said more than 100 employees were on hand to take reservations as the reservation system went live at noon Monday. Representatives continue to work with callers through today even though the center is not accepting additional calls.
Anyone who requested a call back to finalize the reservations should be certain to answer the call or they will lose their place in the queue, Craig said.
Vaccinations scheduled Monday will begin Tuesday at a single site east of Interstate 75 off Daniels Parkway. It’s the site of the old airport terminal parking lot. Message boards will direct traffic to Paul J. Doherty Parkway.
When those registered arrive on site, officials will request three things: name, identification and time of appointment before allowing them to queue up. (Only those with appointments will be vaccinated.) People are asked to arrive no more than 45 minutes before their assigned vaccination time. Even though this is an appointment system, processing times may vary. Be prepared for some wait time.
FDOH anticipates administering 1,000 shots Tuesday, and 2,000 shots per day on Wednesday and Thursday. Reservations will resume once more vaccinations arrive.
Complete information can be found at
www.leegov.com/vaccine, People can visit Lee County Government Facebook and other social media channels (
www.leegov.com/socialmedia) or monitor Florida DOH’s Twitter @flhealthlee.
Those with reservations can expedite the process by coming prepared: visit
www.leegov.com/vaccine to read the Moderna vaccination information and to print and complete the consent form.
Social distancing and masks are encouraged; take into account weather conditions. Portable toilets, handwashing stations, drinking water and some chairs will be available. For safety and security, county government and Lee County Sheriff’s Office staff will be on site.
The following will not be permitted: Recreational Vehicles, campers or trailers. Only service animals will be permitted in the vaccination area. This is not a drive-thru site. The site is ADA compliant.
More than 6,140 shots have been administered to medical workers and people 65 and older at various sites. (Vaccination sites officially opened Monday, Dec. 28, in Lee County.) This total does not include medical workers vaccinated at separate sites by the Florida Department of Health-Lee.
Fort Myers, FL, Jan. 3, 2021 – The Florida Department of Health and Lee County government will launch a reservation system and a new, larger site for free COVID-19 vaccinations for frontline healthcare workers and people age 65 and older.
The reservation system will launch Monday and vaccinations will resume Tuesday at a single site east of Interstate 75 off of Daniels Parkway. It’s the site of the old airport terminal parking lot. Message boards will direct traffic to Paul J. Doherty Parkway.
Only people with appointments will be vaccinated. Reservations will be scheduled from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday, and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday. People can begin making reservations starting at noon Monday by calling 833-618-2001. Reservations must be made by phone.
The state has hired a vendor to handle the reservations. Its call center will be open noon to 8 p.m. Monday and 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. the remainder of the week until 5,000 appointments are filled.
When those registered arrive on site, officials will request ID showing proof of age before allowing them to queue up. People are asked arrive no more than 45 minutes before their assigned vaccination time. Even though this is an appointment system, processing times may vary. Be prepared for some wait time.
FDOH anticipates administering 1,000 shots Tuesday, and 2,000 shots per day on Wednesday and Thursday. Reservations will resume once more vaccinations arrive.
Complete information can be found at
www.leegov.com/vaccine, People can visit Lee County Government Facebook and other social media channels (
www.leegov.com/socialmedia) or monitor Florida DOH’s Twitter @flhealthlee.
Those with reservations can expedite the process by coming prepared: visit
www.leegov.com/vaccine to read the Moderna vaccination information and to print and complete the consent form.
Social distancing and masks are encouraged; take into account weather conditions. Portable toilets, handwashing stations, drinking water and some chairs will be available. For safety and security, county government and Lee County Sheriff’s Office staff will be on site.
The following will not be permitted: Recreational Vehicles, campers or trailers. Only service animals will be permitted in the vaccination area. This is not a drive-thru site. The site is ADA compliant.
More than 6,140 shots were administered to medical workers and people 65 and older at various sites. (Vaccination sites officially opened Monday, Dec. 28, in Lee County.) This total does not include medical workers vaccinated at separate sites by the Florida Department of Health-Lee.
For more information regarding the vaccine and vaccination sites log on to
https://www.leegov.com/covid-19/vaccine
