More than 6,500 people who live or work in Saline County have been vaccinated against COVID-19. According to the Saline County Health Department, this marks another important milestone as more people have been vaccinated than have tested positive for the virus.

The agency says in their ongoing efforts to improve efficiency in scheduling for the COVID-19 vaccine, those who provided an email address at the time of registration will receive an email notice when it is time for them to schedule their appointment. Not providing an email address does not affect your placement on the list or the time frame in which you will receive a call to schedule your appointment.

When an appointment is available for you, you will receive an email from Salina Family Healthcare Center with a unique link to schedule your appointment.

Please add [email protected] to your safe list to prevent the email from going to your SPAM or Junk folder. Scheduling via this link will only be available for a limited time. To avoid missing this opportunity, please do not delay in scheduling this appointment. Sharing your link will hinder your ability to schedule an appointment.

The health department is aware of the governor’s announcement about the K-12 vaccination program; however, they have not been provided any additional information at this time.

KDHE has updated their guidance regarding quarantine after vaccination.

Vaccinated persons with an exposure to someone with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 are not required to quarantine if they meet all of the following criteria:

• Are fully vaccinated (i.e., =2 weeks following receipt of the second dose in a 2-dose series, or =2 weeks following receipt of one dose of a single-dose vaccine)
• Are within 3 months following receipt of the last dose in the series
• Have remained asymptomatic since the current COVID-19 exposure

Persons who do not meet all 3 of the above criteria should continue to follow current quarantine guidance after exposure to someone with suspected or confirmed COVID-19.

As an exception to the above guidance, vaccinated inpatients and residents in healthcare settings should continue to quarantine following an exposure to someone with suspected or confirmed COVID-19; outpatients should be cared for using appropriate transmission-based precautions. This exception is due to the unknown vaccine effectiveness in this population, the higher risk of severe disease and death, and challenges with social distancing in healthcare settings.