City of Detroit Vaccine Rollout Update

The vaccine rollout here in Michigan has been relatively slow compared to other states. The Washington Post has a great article tracking vaccinations. Here’s where Michigan stands in the COVID vaccine effort:

At least 222,379 first doses have been administered (total population is 9.987 million)

covering 5.2% of the prioritized population...

and 2.2% of the state’s population.

Michigan has been allocated 696,600 doses,

enough to vaccinate 16.0% of the prioritized population...

and 7.0% of the state’s population.

2021.01.12 Michigan Covid Vaccinations from Washington Post.jpg

On Monday, we received a press release from the City of Detroit about the Coronavirus Vaccine out of the TCF Center. Here it is, in full:

Statement from Detroit COO Hakim Berry on TCF COVID Vaccine Scheduling process

Since 9am this morning our COVID vaccine scheduling call center staffed by Rock Connections has experienced extremely high volumes, receiving more than 100,000 calls. Those who predicted that Detroiters would not be interested in receiving the vaccine were clearly incorrect.

Rock Connections has already increased its call center staff from 42 to 56 representatives booking the appointments.  Call Center hours have now been increased by two hours a day and will operate 9 AM and 8 PM. 

Our system is set up so that calls will not be kept on hold if there is more than a half-hour wait to speak to a representative.  If your call is dropped, please call later today or anytime this week.  At any point the wait time is under 30 minutes, your call will go through.

A major cause of call volumes is a large number calls from individuals who are not eligible.  We do not have the capacity to answer questions from people under 75 or non-Detroiters about vaccinations in general.  If you are not eligible to book the vaccine, please do not tie up the call lines. 

As a reminder, people should call 313-230-0505 to schedule an appointment only if they meet the following qualifications: 

  • A Detroit resident 75 and older

  • Any “good neighbor" 65 and older who drives a 75 year old (or older) Detroit resident to TCF

  • The following Group B essential workers: K-12 teachers and support staff and child care workers

We are booking 20,000 appointments through February 5th.  The call center has the ability to book up to 4,000 appointments per day, so we expect to be booking appointments at least through the end of the day Friday.  We will add to those appointments as fast as the federal government provides vaccines.

We thank Detroiters for their patience in this process and, most of all, for their commitment to being vaccinated so life can get back to normal as soon as possible. 


This is somewhat frustrating, because the listed qualifications above are narrower than what was previously released. The previous statements from the State of Michigan include more people in the Phase IB, but the City of Detroit must be focusing on Group A only at this time, which includes only seniors over the age of 75:

Group A:

  • Persons 75 years of age or older not covered in Phase 1A.

    • This includes those in a congregate setting that were not reached in Phase 1A.

Henry Ford Health System Vaccine RollOut

Henry Ford Health System is also rolling out the vaccine here in Detroit, so if you have a MyChart account with Henry Ford, you could potentially receive an email from Henry Ford Health System (HFHS) about this vaccine option. See below for full details - this information was sent out to HFHS staff on January 8th.

What’s interesting to note is that Henry Ford is following the State of Michigan guidelines for eligibility, including “anyone 65 years and older and a broader category of essential workers.”


We have made considerable progress vaccinating our team members, having administered first doses to nearly 17,000 employees, with second doses underway for those vaccinated during our first days of the campaign. We are now expanding eligibility to volunteers, Henry Ford retirees 65 years and older, and approximately 3,000 students from our clinical education community. Additionally, we are partnering with multiple leaders across our region in a collaborative effort to vaccinate private practice physicians and other healthcare workers.

As you likely know, the state of Michigan has also expanded guidelines for eligibility to include anyone 65 years and older and a broader category of essential workers. Based on that guidance, we are finalizing our plans to begin vaccinating patients and members that meet those guidelines beginning next week.

  • Sites: We plan to launch two types of sites over time – those that will operate from our existing primary care clinics and others designed to serve as “mass vaccination sites” to accommodate larger numbers of patients safely, provide greater access and parking, and operate without disruption to our normal clinical activities. Here’s a breakdown by market:

    • South - The K-building at Henry Ford Hospital will open Monday, Jan. 11, with Henry Ford Medical Center – Ford Road expected to open by the end of next week

    • North - Three sites are expected to open by the end of next week: Henry Ford Medical Centers Lakeside and Columbus and the HAP Troy administrative building

    • Central - Two sites are expected to open next week: One Jackson Square as early as Monday, Jan. 11, followed by Henry Ford Allegiance Specialty Hospital, the current site for drive-through testing

  • Staffing: We know staffing continues to be a challenge but we have identified a number of viable options including our own primary care team members to staff the medical center locations. Additionally, HR plans to activate our central staffing model early next week to help identify needs, as well as team members who may be able to redeploy.

  • Scheduling & Patient Engagement: Initially, we will need to prioritize existing Henry Ford patients 65 years and older and plan to contact them proactively via email, providing resources to help them make an informed decision and encouraging them to sign up for MyChart if they haven’t already, for online scheduling when appointments become available.

We know that much of this is new territory and we will need to be agile as things change. A complex, community-wide vaccination campaign of this size and uniqueness requires unprecedented partnership, innovation and determination. We can’t imagine pulling this off with any other team and we are so proud of your efforts in service to our communities and each other.


Thanks for reading, and best of luck navigating these vaccine resources.

-Dr. Paul Thomas with Plum Health DPC

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