(COLDWATER) – The Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency has issued a response to the State's announcement of more COVID-19 vaccinations.

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services says starting today the State will be moving to Phase 1B and will be vaccinating the following individuals: people 65 and older; along with frontline essential workers including police officers, first responders, state and federal frontline workers, jail and prison staff along with pre K-12 grade teachers and childcare providers.

Currently the CHA has a limited supply of Moderna vaccine and is already committed to completing the Phase 1A appointments, which includes EMS and Health Care individuals. The next available shipment of Moderna vaccine is estimated to arrived the week of January 24 as it is in short supply.

Vaccine allocation is controlled by manufacturer supply and determinations made by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in coordination with the MDHHS.

CHA Health Officer Rebecca Burns says they are not there yet, in regards to moving to Phase 1B. She says the vaccine is scarce and they are still making their way through the health care workers in Phase 1A.

As of January 5, the number of vaccines administered by county are 391 in St. Joseph, 436 in Branch and 612 in Hillsdale.

Burns says the CHA is currently working on planning vaccination clinics and the public will be notified when an online scheduler is launched. All vaccine clinics are by appointment only and are scheduled at specific times.

Burns says they know there are several questions about the process. They are asking the public to pay attention to updates through the CHA website. Click Here. You can also go to their Facebook page. They will also notify the public through press releases to the local media.