While Bastrop County residents were left largely on their own by the county to contend with last week s harsh winter weather conditions and utility outages, Pastor Roland Nava left the doors to his ministry wide open for those in need of a warm place to rest.
Nava is the pastor at In The Streets Hands Up High Ministry, at 987 Texas 95 N in Bastrop.
When outside temperatures dip below freezing, the ministry which also provides an emergency family shelter for people experiencing homelessness with children and housing for veterans experiencing homelessness offers a “Shelter of Grace” for those who need warmth.
The Bastrop County Commissioners Court on Monday approved a 30-page COVID-19 vaccine distribution plan to help guide the county as it aims to inoculate residents against the virus.
The formal document, created by Bastrop County Health Authority Dr. Desmar Walkes, outlines how the county will help provide vaccines to the public.
“It’s quite an aggressive plan, but it’s getting off to a very good start,” Bastrop County Judge Paul Pape said. “We will provide the vaccine to everyone as soon as we can, as soon as available. That’s our mission and our goal and our objective.”
Earlier this month, Pape’s office announced a pre-registration process for local residents and those in nearby rural counties to sign up to receive the vaccine. That announcement, which came after Bastrop County had been designated as a vaccine distribution hub, also came with the stated goal of inoculating all county residents against COVID-19 within 90 days.
Bastrop County is hoping to inoculate all residents against COVID-19 within 90 days as the county has been designated a vaccine distribution hub.
County Judge Paul Pape s office on Tuesday announced a pre-registration process for local residents and those in adjoining rural counties to sign up to receive the vaccine. Bastrop County Cares, an intermediary organization, has set up a website covac.info for residents to register.
“It is our primary objective to get everyone in Bastrop County, and other rural Central Texas counties, registered for the vaccine as soon as possible and to get vaccines administered to all our citizens within 90 days,” Pape’s office said. “We believe this is the quickest way to stop the pandemic locally and to save lives and the suffering of those who contract the virus.”
COVID-19 vaccine distribution begins in Bastrop County
Distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine has begun in Bastrop County targeting individuals in Phase 1A of the county’s vaccine distribution plan.
Bastrop County Health Authority Dr. Desmar Walkes said Phase 1A individuals are first in line to receive the vaccine. This group includes hospital staff working directly with COVID-19 patients, long-term care residents and staff, emergency medical services providers and home health care workers.
Also in the Phase 1A group is staff in outpatient care offices who interact with symptomatic patients, direct care staff in freestanding emergency medical care facilities and urgent care clinics, community pharmacy staff, public health and emergency response staff who administer COVID-19 testing and vaccinations, last responders and school nurses.
The Bastrop County Vaccine Task Force, which was set up in November to oversee the COVID-19 vaccine administration, has recommended that hospital staff working directly with patients who have or are at high risk for COVID-19, long-term care staff working directly with vulnerable residents, emergency medical services providers, home health care workers and residents of long-term care facilities should be first in line to receive the vaccine.
Bastrop County Health Authority Dr. Desmar Walkes, who leads the vaccine task force which includes representatives from local schools, nursing homes and hospitals as well as regional and state health experts, presented the initial vaccine distribution plan, and discussed the factors that guided the plan’s creation, during the Commissioners Court meeting Monday.