EMERGENCY NOTIFICATIONS
Situation Update – VA Puget Sound Health Care System 09/30/2021 04:47 PM EDT ATTENTION COMMUNITY CARE PATIENTS: To more efficiently serve you, our VA Puget Sound Community Care Customer Service Line (253-582-8440, ext. 64545, 206-277-4545 and 1-800-329-8387 ext. 64545) will temporarily have modified business hours October 1- 15. During this time, our Community Care Customer Service Line will be opened Monday-Thursday (8:30 a.m. through 4 p.m.) and closed Friday October 1 , 8 and 15.
During the modified business hours, Veterans may contact the National Office of Community Care – Customer Contact Center @ 877-CCN-TRIW (877-226-8749) for information regarding referral status, claims questions, support with portal on TW.com and other general questions. Please note the National Office Customer Contact Center does NOT schedule appointments. Thanks for your understanding and patience as we take steps to improve your patient experience.
COVID-19 VACCINES: COVID-19 vaccinations (first, second and third doses only; no boosters at this time) are available by appointment to Veterans, spouses, and caregivers at our main campuses: Seattle (Thursdays from 1 to 3 p.m. and Fridays 8 to 10 a.m.) and American Lake (Mondays and Fridays from 8 to 10 a.m.). VA Puget Sound is not offering walk-in vaccine appointments. Individuals should call 206-716-5716 to schedule a vaccine. If you don’t receive care at the VA, sign up here (https://www.va.gov/health-care/covid-19-vaccine) prior to calling to schedule an appointment. It may be more convenient or faster to receive your vaccine in the community, Veterans can use Washington State’s COVID Vaccine Locator (https://vaccinelocator.doh.wa.gov/) to obtain the vaccine in the community at no cost. ADDITIONAL (THIRD DOSE) VACCINES: The CDC now recommends a third vaccine dose for certain groups of people with weakened immune systems who received either the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine. Data shows that these groups of people are more at risk of serious, long-term illness from COVID-19. They may benefit from a third dose to make sure they have enough protection against COVID-19. At this time, we’re offering additional vaccine doses only for certain groups of people with weakened immune systems.
You may be able to get a third dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine if any of these descriptions are true for you: You currently receive cancer treatment for tumors or cancers of the blood You have advanced HIV (meaning you have a low CD4 cell count) or you have HIV and aren’t on treatment at this time You received an organ transplant and take medicine to suppress your immune system You received a stem cell transplant within the past 2 years or are taking post-transplant medicine to suppress your immune system A health care provider has diagnosed you with a moderate-to-severe primary immunodeficiency (like DiGeorge or Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome) You currently take high-dose corticosteroids or other medicines that may suppress your immune system If your condition or medication isn’t on this list and you think you have a moderately to severely weakened immune system, contact your health care provider. They can tell you if you can get a third vaccine dose at this time. If you received the Janssen (J&J) COVID-19 vaccine, the CDC doesn’t recommend another dose at this time. BOOSTER VACCINES: A booster shot is for people whose immune response may have weakened over time. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized a single booster dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine 6 or more months after completion of a primary series for specific people. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends booster shots for the highest risk populations (people 65 years and older, residents in long-term care facilities and people with underlying medical conditions that place them at higher risk for severe COVID infection.) While we have received VA authorization to provide booster shots, we are finalizing our booster distribution plan and expect to offer booster shots to eligible Veterans at VA in the near future. In the interim, Veterans are encouraged to use Washington State’s COVID Vaccine Locator (https://vaccinelocator.doh.wa.gov/) to obtain the vaccine in the community at no cost. Along with VA Puget Sound vaccine options, Veterans can access Washington State’s COVID Vaccine Locator (https://vaccinelocator.doh.wa.gov/) or VA Pharmacy finder (www.va.gov/find-locations/) to find vaccine availability in the community. For additional and updated information, please call the Vaccine Hotline at 1-800-329-8387, extension 64040 or visit www.va.gov/health-care/covid-19-vaccine/booster-shots-and-additional-doses/.