BROOKLINE — Town Administrator Mel Kleckner and Health Commissioner Dr. Swannie Jett wish to provide Brookline residents with regular updates on the COVID-19 vaccine, including the latest information on its distribution within Brookline.

COVID-19 Call Center to be Re-Activated as Vaccine Resource Hub

Beginning Monday, Jan. 25, Brookline will re-activate the COVID-19 call center it initially launched at the outset of the pandemic — this time with an emphasis on answering questions from the community on the vaccines. 

The call center will be open from Monday-Friday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. until further notice. The number for the call center is 617-879-5636. Those who call after hours may leave a voicemail and their messages will be returned when the call center is open. Questions may also be submitted via email to vaccine@brooklinema.gov.

Residents are encouraged to utilize the call center, and direct all COVID-19 and vaccine related questions there in order to ensure the town’s Department of Public Health may continue to focus on its core work of conducting contact tracing and stopping the spread of the coronavirus. 

The Town of Brookline’s COVID-19 portal remains the best place for Brookline specific information about the pandemic, as well as updates about town-specific vaccination news.

Video: Brookline First Responders Get Their Vaccines

The Town of Brookline’s first responders got their COVID-19 vaccines last week. Click here to see video of the event from Brookline Interactive Group, and hear from Dr. Jett about vaccine progress.

When Can You Be Vaccinated?

The Brookline Department of Public Health has collaborated with the Office of Emergency Management to develop a form that community members are encouraged to complete in order to better understand when they will be eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine.

Beginning this week, eligibility has been expanded to include everyone in phase 1 of the state’s distribution plan. To find out if you’re included in that group, click here. Those who are eligible to be vaccinated now may find vaccination sites by visiting mass.gov/CovidVaccineMap. 

Click here to fill out a questionnaire to learn more about when you can expect to be eligible for a vaccine. In addition, those who complete the questionnaire can sign up for updates on how they can be vaccinated when they’re eligible.

So far, over 1,500 members of the community have completed the questionnaire. 

Brookline residents are strongly urged to refrain from calling the town’s Department of Public Health, and instead refer to the state website for the most up-to-date vaccine information. Public Health staff are currently working hard to conduct contact tracing, and calls for vaccine information interrupt those efforts.

Town-specific information will be provided on a rolling basis via BrooklineCOVID19.com.

In Case You Missed These Updates:

How You Can Stay Informed About the Vaccination Effort:

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the Town of Brookline are working to keep residents both informed about and engaged with the vaccination process, so that individuals can receive doses as they become eligible.

Visit mass.gov/covid-19-vaccine-in-massachusetts for general information, or BrooklineCOVID19.com for Brookline-specific information (as it becomes available).

General information about the vaccine in Massachusetts, including key resources for determining eligibility and accessing shots is available online at mass.gov/covid-19-vaccine-in-massachusetts.

Additionally, the Town of Brookline has made answers to frequently asked questions available on its COVID-19 portal, which can be accessed directly by visiting BrooklineCOVID19.com/vaccineFAQ. The town will share Brookline specific information on BrooklineCOVID19.com as it becomes available. 

Click here to fill out the form and learn more about when you can expect to be eligible for a vaccine and add your name to the waiting list.

Sign up for Alert Brookline Updates for Brookline-Specific Vaccine Information and Other Important Updates

Residents are strongly encouraged to register for the town’s Alert Brookline system in order to receive important updates, including those related to the COVID-19 vaccine. While Alert Brookline provides information about storms and other emergency alerts, it will also enable residents to remain up to date on critical vaccine information relevant to the town. 

To sign up for alerts via phone and text message, click here.

Residents are encouraged to add the following numbers to their contacts to ensure they recognize when they are receiving an official alert call from the town: 

General Updates – 855-969-4636

Emergency Alerts – 866-419-5000

Residents should not dial these numbers, which are only for automated outgoing calls for town related alerts.

Residents may also sign up for alerts from the state by clicking here.

Prominent Brookline Public Health Professionals on Front Line of Vaccine Effort to Join Panel Next Month

Residents are encouraged to take part in a virtual forum early next month that will serve as an opportunity to hear from local and state experts and learn more about the COVID-19 vaccine, as well as plans for how it will be distributed to Brookline residents. 

WHEN: 

Tuesday, Feb. 2, at 7 p.m. 

WHERE: 

Via Zoom. Visit brooklinema.gov/health to register

WHO:  

• Lindsey Baden, Director of Clinical Research, Division of Infectious Diseases at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Dana Farber Cancer Institute
• Larry Madoff, Medical Director of the Bureau of Infectious Disease and Laboratory Sciences for the Massachusetts Department of Public Health
• Swannie Jett, Brookline Health Commissioner
• Natalia Linos, Executive Director of the FXB Center for Health and Human Rights at the Harvard Chan School of Public Health

WHAT:

Brookline public health professionals who work at the forefront of COVID-19 vaccine activity in Massachusetts will participate in a panel discussion moderated by Dr. Natalia Linos, Executive Director of the FXB Center at the Harvard Chan School of Public Health and also a Brookline resident.  The discussion will explore the status of the vaccines in Brookline and in the Commonwealth, including insight into their development and distribution methods.

Each panelist will lend their expertise as they discuss the latest news on vaccine development, how the vaccine will be distributed throughout the state and when certain groups of people will be eligible to be vaccinated.

“We are extremely lucky to count these experts in the field of public health and vaccines as members of our community, and I am grateful for the unique opportunity we have to bring them together to hear their insights on the vaccine effort in Massachusetts,” Dr. Jett said. “While the distribution of the vaccine statewide and in Brookline is an extremely complex and challenging effort, this event will help everyone better understand how it will work and I encourage everyone to attend.”

Lindsey Baden is the Director of Clinical Research for Brigham and Women’s Hospital/Dana Farber Cancer Institute’s Division of infectious Diseases, and is the principal investigator for the Moderna vaccine trials that led to approval of Moderna’s vaccine.

Larry Madoff will discuss the Massachusetts Department of Public Health’s plan for distributing the vaccine throughout the Commonwealth. He is part of the COVID-19 leadership team at MDPH.

Dr. Jett will describe how administration of the COVID-19 vaccine will occur throughout Brookline.

For questions about the event, contact Lynne Karsten at lkarsten@brooklinema.gov.

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