San Antonio Jewish Community COVID Vaccination Town Hall  

January 15, 2020

San Antonio Jewish Community COVID Vaccination Town Hall :

Local Medical Experts Answer Your Questions about the COVID Vaccine 

VIEW THE RECORDED WEBINAR HERE 

ABOUT THE PANELISTS 

Ruth Berggren, M.D., MACP 

Director, UT Health San Antonio Center for Medical Humanities & Ethics 

Dr. Berggren is an infectious disease specialist and directs the Center for Medical Humanities & Ethics at UT Health San Antonio. She served on the UT Health working group that examined the safety of the Pfizer vaccine and considered how it should be distributed among front-line health care workers.  

Tyler J. Curiel, M.D., M.P.H.  

Professor and The Daisy M. Skinner President’s Chair in Cancer Immunology Research at UT Health San Antonio Long School of Medicine.  

Dr. Curiel is a physician-scientist with clinical expertise in phase I experimental therapeutics and cancer. His laboratory expertise is in human immunology with an emphasis on understanding the immunopathologic basis of human diseases including cancer, infections, and autoimmunity.  

Jared Diamond 

Jared Diamond is a local business owner and member of Congregation Agudas Achim. He suffered from COVID in March and endured a prolonged 25 day hospital stay including needing a ventilator for nine of those days. He and his wife Robin are the parents of three children. 

ABOUT THE MODERATOR 

Amy C. Benedikt, M.D., M.A.  

Pediatric Anesthesiologist 

Dr. Benedikt is the president of Temple Beth-El in San Antonio. She has also held leadership positions for 15 years at the Jewish Federations of North America both locally and nationally. Dr. Benedikt is a practicing pediatric anesthesiologist at Tejas Anesthesia, the Director of Pediatric Anesthesia at Methodist Children’s Hospital, and the Medical Director of the Methodist Ambulatory Surgery Center, North Central. She has recently completed a master’s degree in the Human Dimensions of Organizations at the University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Benedikt is married to Dr. Richard Benedikt. They are the parents of three grown children, Elana, Robert, and Drew.  

RESOURCES 

Who can get vaccines: 

• Category 1A – healthcare workers, long-term care staff, EMS providers, home health care workers, and residents of long-term care facilities 
• Category 1B – people 65 and older, pregnant women, and those over 16 with pre-existing conditions, including but not limited to cancer, heart issues, obesity, or Type 2 diabetes mellitus.
   

Call ahead or go online to make appointments directly with providers. At this time, appointments are full, but keep checking, as more dosages become available. 

Where to receive the vaccine for those eligible:

• CITY OF SAN ANTONIO AT THE ALAMODOME: covid19.sanantonio.gov/vaccine or call 311 option 8 
• UNIVERSITY HEALTH SYSTEM: wecandoitsa.com or call 210-644-1960 
• WELLMED: will be vaccinating 1B at the Elvira Cisneros Senior Community Center and Alicia Trevino Lopez Senior Center call 833-968-1745 to check for appointments 
• CHRISTUS SANTA ROSA HEALTH SYSTEM: Christushealth.org use the online chat to sign up for slots when they become available 
• METHODIST HEALTHCARE: (category 1A only) 833-582-1974 exne.ws/sahealth 
• HEB: (category 1A only at this time) vaccine.heb.com will have a scheduling tool when 1B is available  
• CVS: only long-term care residents and staff currently. cvs.com will have a scheduling tool when 1B is available 
• WALGREENS: residents and staff of long-term care only right now. check exne.ws/wal for updates when 1B is available 
• VETERANS: The VA is currently vaccinating Veterans who are eligible. Call 404-828-5257 option 1. va.gov/health-care/covid-19-vaccine
• SAJSS: San Antonio Jewish Senior Services will provide transportation to vaccine appointments based on availability. Please call SAJSS at least 3 days in advance: 210-616-4811 
• Ohr Lanu: If you experience difficulty registering for the COVID vaccine, please contact Ohr Lanu at 210-973-7172 for assistance. [email protected]

CO-SPONSORED BY: 

Jewish Federation of San Antonio, Barshop Jewish Community Center, Chabad of San Antonio, Congregation Agudas Achim, Congregation Beth Am, Congregation Rodfei Sholom, Hadassah SA, Hebrew Free Loan SA, Hillel SA, Israeli Chabad SA, Jewish Community Relations Council, Jewish Family Service, Maimonides Society, NCJW, Ohr Lanu Foundation, San Antonio Jewish Senior Services,  Shmuel Bass Torah Academy, Temple Beth-El, Temple Chai