Orange County

Florida pilot program aims to bring COVID-19 vaccines to homebound seniors

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — In the effort to vaccinate as many of Florida’s seniors as possible, this week Gov. Ron DeSantis introduced a pilot program to get COVID-19 vaccine shots to those who are homebound or have difficulty traveling.

DeSantis said 1,500 doses per week will be set aside to vaccinate people who fall into those categories.

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The mission is in full swing at the Senior Resource Alliance, which directs funding to support services for the seniors across Central Florida.

Throughout the pandemic, the agency has worked to spread information about the virus and the vaccine to the 1,700 clients they serve.

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Seniors First, which operates federal and state programs like Meals on Wheels and neighborhood lunch programs throughout Central Florida, said it is in the process of determining who has had the vaccine, who wants it, who needs transportation and who needs it brought to them.

Once they establish those numbers, they’re looking at sending vaccinators out with the nearly 300 volunteers who deliver meals.

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“So for them to go out with somebody that the senior already knows and to be able to deliver the meal and deliver the vaccine, what a great, feel-good, you know, warm and fuzzy, hands-on kind of approach,” Marsha Lorenz with Seniors First said.

Sarah Wilson

Sarah Wilson, WFTV.com

Sarah Wilson joined WFTV Channel 9 in 2018 as a digital producer after working as an award-winning newspaper reporter for nearly a decade in various communities across Central Florida.