Lake County changing how COVID-19 vaccine is distributed

TAVARES, Fla. - Lake County was initially requiring appointments for people 65-plus to get the vaccine but that plan has changed.

"The worst problem was getting an appointment," said 82-year-old Tony Dix, who received the Moderna vaccine Wednesday.

He said it took around 150 calls to finally get an appointment.

"We’re getting so many calls and we have more staff than we staff for hurricanes to give you some kind of perspective. Probably, the most staff we’ve ever had and they’re still overloaded," said Lake County Commissioner Sean Parks.

Two locations opened for vaccinations Wednesday – in Leesburg and Clermont. After just one day of operating, health officials said they are going to change how they’re running these sites.

RELATED: County-by-county: COVID-19 vaccine distribution for those 65 and older in Central Florida

While initially they were requiring appointments made over the phone, they say it will be more efficient to take people first come, first served.

"The way that we’ve been doing it all summer long with the tests. Even when we had a high testing demand – we went to this model and it worked because we can put the most out per morning. We don’t under schedule," said Aaron Kissler with the Florida Department of Health in Lake County.

Kissler said they will honor appointments that have already been made but when they get the next batch of vaccines -- which may be at the end of this week -- they will move to the new model. He said that on Thursday and Friday, employees will just be working with people who have made appointments

.Lake County vaccinated more than 1,200 people Wednesday after receiving 3,000 doses.

CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE

Tune in to FOX 35 Orlando for the latest coronavirus news.