TAMPA, Fla. — Matt King was one of the first two dozen people in line Monday morning at the FEMA COVID-19 vaccine site outside of the old Tampa Greyhound Track.
“I got there at like 5:30,” he said. “There were four or five columns of cars and around 6 [o’clock] someone came through and asked ‘are you an educator.’”
King said yes.
The assistant professor at the University of South Florida had gotten word from department faculty the day prior that the FEMA site was vaccinating educators, including higher education faculty and staff.
He’d also heard that another FEMA site in Orlando had offered the vaccine to UCF professors, even though higher education employees currently are not specified in state or federal guidelines.
But with his asthma, King said he jumped at the opportunity.
At the site, he said his USF faculty badge had been checked multiple times before he reached the main tent.
“They were clearly letting in faculty at the very beginning of the day,” he said. “I had several people check my credentials.”
He got his first dose of the Pfizer vaccine and was on his way.
RELATED: Tampa's new FEMA vaccine site accepts walk-ups if you can't schedule an appointment ahead of time
But at some point Monday, the site stopped offering vaccines to employees of colleges and universities.
“I don’t know where along the line the misunderstanding was but I am aware there were higher educational staff being vaccinated at one time at this site and then it did seem to change,” said FEMA spokesperson Hallie Anderson, but she couldn't explain why they had stopped or, for that matter, started.
Anderson said all FEMA sites in Florida are following the state’s eligibility parameters, but that also includes the federal guidelines laid out by President Joe Biden prioritizing K-12 educators and daycare providers of all ages. She referred additional questions to the state, saying FEMA only supports the site but doesn’t manage it. Calls and emails to the Department of Emergency Management were not immediately returned.
Confusion has continued to complicate the vaccine rollout, with eligibility and processes to sign up varying depending on which site you choose.
For example, booking an appointment at a county-managed site in Hillsborough requires an appointment through patientportalfl.com
But an appointment through the FEMA site in Tampa can be scheduled through myvaccine.fl.gov. Walkups are also welcome.
Pharmacies like CVS and Walgreens, which are receiving vaccines through the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program, are vaccinating K-12 teachers of all ages. Those appointments must be booked directly through each retailer’s website.
But only school employees 50 or older are eligible at state-run sites.
“There are a lot of us who want the vaccine and are willing to be patient, just give me information so I understand how long I’ll have to wait,” Linda Hughes-Kirchubel said.
“They need to communicate with each other and the public so the public knows what’s going on.”
On top of the confusion—or perhaps a direct result of it—officials at Tampa’s FEMA site say supply has far outpaced demand in recent days, leaving several hundred doses unused.
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