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Are you 50 and over? You can get a vaccine at Jackson Health if you meet these criteria

Jackson Health System will soon begin vaccinating police officers, firefighters and K-12 school personnel if they are all 50 and over.

The hospital is also lowering its age requirement from 55 to 50 for people with at-risk conditions. It’s scrapping a list of 13 medical conditions to include any condition that makes someone a high-risk candidate for COVID complications. A doctor’s note listing the condition is still needed.

Jackson Health’s President and CEO Carlos Migoya announced the changes Tuesday during a virtual news conference. The addition of police, firefighters, teachers and other school personnel 50 and older comes after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis issued an executive order making the groups a vaccination priority.

Appointments were expected to open late Tuesday, with vaccinations set to begin Wednesday. Jackson recommends following its Twitter and Instagram accounts for updates at https://jacksonhealth.org/keeping-you-safe/. You must be a Florida resident to get a vaccine.

Jackson Health offering vaccines to police, teachers and others. What proof is needed?

Those who book an appointment through Jackson Health will be given the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, which requires two doses, 21 days apart.

Firefighters and police officers who book a slot will need to show a badge or department ID the day of their appointment. School personnel working at a K-12 school, including substitute teachers and after-school care staff, will need to show a school ID.

For people 50 and older with an at-risk condition, including cancer, morbid obesity and type 2 diabetes, a doctor’s note is required and must be on the physician’s letterhead or prescription pad. The note from the physician must list the patient’s name, the high-risk condition being treated and a recommendation to be vaccinated.

Migoya said the hospital is also working directly with police and fire departments as well as with Miami-Dade County Public Schools to help sign up eligible employees for vaccine appointments.

Miami-Dade County’s public hospital network will also continue to offer vaccination appointments to seniors 65 and older.

For those who aren’t eligible yet to receive the vaccine, there’s no word when Florida plans to expand the vaccine criteria again. DeSantis has said he’s hoping to have shots widely available by April.

Meanwhile, Jackson is determined to vaccinate as many people as possible right now.

“We have said from the beginning that the vaccines are the best tool to combat this virus and we’ve also said that getting them into the arms of as many people as possible as quickly and safely as possible is no easy feat,” said Migoya, Jackson’s CEO. “It’s going to take time ... but please be patient. Your turn for the vaccine will come.”

‘At risk’ people under 65 can now get vaccines at pharmacies, doctor offices in Florida