Florida opens COVID-19 vaccines to residents 16 and older on Monday

ORLANDO, Fla. — Major changes begin Monday for Florida’s COVID-19 vaccination plans.

On Monday, Florida residents who are 16 and up can get vaccinated. It’s the largest group to be eligible.

This is all happening as just a small percentage of those ages 40 to 60 have already got their vaccinations.

Watch: All 9,000 Orange County COVID-19 vaccine appointments booked within 45 minutes

Recent trends in demand have been slow-going to get those under 65 vaccinated.

CDC: Fully vaccinated can travel again (NCD)

That’s in part because there are far more 40- to 65-year-olds than those 65 and up.

In Orange County, there are 2.5 times as many in the younger group.

Read: DeSantis issues executive order banning COVID-19 ‘vaccine passports’ in Florida

Public health researchers believe younger Floridians aren’t as concerned about the virus, so they’re not rushing to get the vaccine right now – or maybe ever.

Demand was strong over the last week, particularly at the Federal Emergency Management Agency sites.

They’ve been steadily exhausting all of their 3,000 daily doses of the vaccine and also vaccinating most of those returning for a second dose.

This is good news because there were initial concerns that many people would fail to show back up.

Read: Here’s where to find the COVID-19 vaccine in your county

The past week also saw a sharp rise in the number of 40- to 50 year-olds who have received their first doses, which shows how the supply is now largely keeping up with the increases in eligibility and people wanting the vaccine.

Supply has increased and demand has slowed enough that CVS routinely has appointments available in many Florida cities. As of Sunday evening, Central Florida cities include, Cocoa, Indialantic, Melbourne, Merritt Island, Palm Bay, Rockledge, Titusville and Vero Beach.

See the full report in the video above.

Cox Media Group