Saratoga County Announces Vaccination Rollout

Saratoga County Announces Update on Vaccination Rollout

Mass vaccination plan in works for years, ready to be deployed as supply begins to increase

SARATOGA COUNTY, NY – Saratoga County today announced the progress of its efforts to vaccinate the residents of the County. During a press conference this afternoon, leaders from the Board of Supervisors and County departments discussed the ongoing measures to provide vaccinations to those in Phase 1A, as well as next steps for those in Phase 1B and beyond to receive vaccines as well.

“Our County has been preparing for this moment for many years, and we are ready and able to begin a large-scale vaccination program as soon as we begin receiving more doses from the State,” said Theodore Kusnierz, the recently elected Saratoga County Board of Supervisors Chairman.

Currently, approximately 9,600 Saratoga County residents, or 4.5% of the population, have received either the first or both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. Roughly 600 of those people have received both doses of the vaccine and are now fully inoculated.

In addition to the current efforts to vaccinate residents, Saratoga County has also identified 18 PODs, or points of dispensing, to help distribute the vaccine once it becomes more widely available to the general public. Public Health Services had been preparing for years, dating back to the events on 9/11, for a mass vaccination program if one was ever needed, and as a result the County is fully prepared to begin vaccinating the general public once more vaccines become available. Of the 18 PODs, the City Center of Saratoga Springs will serve as the largest location for distributing vaccines and is appealing because of its size, proximity to a population center and ability to be secured 24/7. The ability to schedule these PODs will be dependent upon the supply of vaccine that the County receives. 

“We have been in the process of preparing mass vaccination facilities that will be available for use on a 24/7 basis. We must work quickly, efficiently and equitably to get all residents vaccinated, and I believe we are more than prepared to do so,” said County Supervisor Tara Gaston, Chair of the Health Committee.

“It wasn’t long ago that many were expressing trepidation here in Saratoga County about getting a COVID-19 vaccine. Now, we’ve been inundated with questions about how and when to receive a vaccine, and demand far outpaces our current supply. But once the supply begins to increase, we have the infrastructure in place to rapidly begin vaccinating our residents on a large scale,” said Dr. Daniel Kuhles, Commissioner of Saratoga County Public Health Services.