Alameda County on Wednesday expanded COVID-19 vaccine access to all residents ages 16 and older, but only those living in vulnerable East Bay communities most impacted by the pandemic.
The 12 ZIP codes span Oakland, Hayward, San Leandro and San Lorenzo: 94601, 94603, 94605, 94606, 94607, 94621, 94541, 94544, 94545, 94577, 94578, 94580. People ages 16 and up in those ZIP codes immediately move into the vaccine queue ahead of California’s highly-anticipated eligibility expansion for that age group on April 15.
In all, those neighborhoods have reported over 43,000 positive coronavirus cases. That’s an average of 3,592 cases per ZIP code, as calculated by the San Francisco Chronicle.
The wider eligibility net gives a leg up to "communities that have borne a disproportionate burden throughout the pandemic," Alameda County Public Health Department Spokesperson Neetu Balram told the paper.
Alameda County joins Contra Costa County as the only in the Bay Area allowing residents ages 16 and older to get a COVID-19 vaccination. Contra Costa, though, didn’t limit the expansion to specific ZIP codes.
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