COVID-19 Team Update: First Vaccine Clinics at the Smithsonian

This week our efforts to obtain doses of the COVID-19 vaccine came to fruition. On Tuesday, Occupational Health Services (OHS) successfully administered 150 doses to essential staff and regional employees at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI). Deputy Secretary and Chief Operating Officer Meroë Park was among the staff who received their first dose and leads us in offering a heartfelt thanks to OHS, SCBI, our volunteers, and the Warren County public health system.

Further strides to make the vaccine more widely available were made on Thursday when a multi-agency vaccination effort, led by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), got underway at the National Museum of Natural History (NMNH). Through Friday, April 23, hundreds of government employees in the National Capital Region, including Smithsonian federal and trust staff and embedded contractors will be vaccinated daily. We are grateful to our federal partners, our hosts at NMNH, the on-site volunteers, and the many teams who are supporting this One Smithsonian endeavor.

Vaccination is a critical tool in controlling the spread of COVID-19 and helping stop the pandemic. It helps prevent serious illness and may protect the people around you, particularly those who are at increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19. It has long been our goal that all members of the Smithsonian community have safe and easy access to the vaccine. We are delighted to see this progress, and we will keep working to reach our whole Smithsonian community.

Vaccination in the National Capital Region: If your duty station is in the National Capital Region, you can still register for vaccination through the HHS effort. Please refer to the email you received from the Vaccine Administration Management System (VAMS), which provides instructions on how to schedule a vaccination appointment. This announcement also offers helpful tips regarding the opportunity. Note: We are aware of a problem on the VAMS registration site that occurs when you select your county if the name of your county includes an apostrophe (ex. Prince George’s County). Please leave this optional field blank to avoid the issue.

Vaccination beyond the National Capital Region: We are still working to obtain vaccine doses outside of the National Capital Region. For those individuals, we recommend seeking vaccination through your locality versus waiting for the Smithsonian. Thankfully, this is becoming easier across the country. The President has directed that states make every adult eligible for a coronavirus vaccine by Monday, April 19. Indeed, governors in Florida, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, and other states where we have a presence have committed to meet this deadline or have already opened up vaccine eligibility.

Reporting your Vaccination: Whether you obtain the vaccine through your state or local jurisdiction or the federal vaccine drive,Smithsonian employees and affiliated persons are encouraged to send a copy of their vaccination card to Occupational Health Services’ (OHS) at OHS-MedicalReview@si.edu after your final dose. This information will help OHS continue to understand the needs of our community. As always, your medical information will be kept private.

Thank you again for your patience over these past months and thank you to all who have rallied to support our One Smithsonian vaccination efforts. Please continue to reach out to the COVID-19 Response Team with any questions you may have.

Stay safe and be well,
COVID-19 Response Team

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