Expand / Collapse search
☰

Official: Any U.S. citizen can receive COVID-19 vaccine in Florida

By FOX 35 News Staff
Updated  January 11, 2021 10:20am EST
Coronavirus in Florida
FOX 13 Tampa Bay

Coronavirus vaccine is available to out of state residents in Florida

An emergency management official says that you do not need to be a Florida resident to receive the vaccine here.

SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. - Any U.S. citizen can receive the COVID-19 vaccine in Florida, even if they are not a resident of the Sunshine State, a state official confirmed.

Seminole County's Emergency Manager Alan Harris confirmed to FOX 35 that the COVID-19 vaccine is from the federal government, which means it must be available to any U.S. citizen regardless of where they live.

"We do not buy the vaccine. The vaccine is given to us with the caveat that we will provide it to any resident of the United States of America," he explained.

MORE NEWS: Pelosi says House will impeach Trump if Pence doesn’t act to remove him with 25th Amendment

That means it does not matter what county you live in, if you are a snowbird or visiting from out of state, you can get the COVID-19 vaccine anywhere as long you are in the priority group that has access to it.

"There are Canadians that have homes down here, they pay property taces. We have given vaccines to those individuals as well," Harris added.

The State Health Department website shows that as of last Friday morning, over 18,000 people from out-of-state have gotten the COVID-19 vaccine in Florida. That's about four percent of the total number of people vaccine in the state.

RELATED: Orlando Health to offer patients 65 or older COVID-19 vaccines

Harris said that the goal of the vaccinations is to save lives. With that, the counties that try to limit the vaccine to local people are quickly put on notice. For example, he said this happened with Seminole County because they did not know citizens outside Seminole County could receive the vaccine in Florida. It was on the county's website for three hours and the federal government quickly called and said you cannot do that.

"If you do that, we aren't sending you anymore vaccine and your residents can go to a county that will open it up to everyone," he said the federal government said.

Those who want the vaccine just need some type of U.S. identification and to sign a consent form.

Tune in to FOX 35 Orlando for the latest Central Florida news.