UPDATE: On April 16, 2021 Philadelphia moved into Phase 2 for eligibility to receive the vaccine. This means any Philadelphia resident over the age of 16 can get the vaccine.

While there are many people in Philadelphia who want to be vaccinated against COVID-19, there is currently not enough vaccine for all of them. The City is getting more, but it’s still not enough.

Because there is not enough, the Health Department and the Philadelphia Vaccine Advisory Committee have identified groups who are at the highest risk and are prioritizing those folks to receive vaccine first.

The most important eligibility criteria is that people who live in Philadelphia are the only ones that can receive vaccine in Philadelphia, except for very select employment groups, like hospital workers, first responders, and teachers.

In addition to being a Philadelphia resident, people who meet the following criteria are currently eligible to receive vaccine.

Philadelphia Phase 1a

  • Paid healthcare workers
  • Residents and staff at long-term care facilities, like nursing homes

Philadelphia Phase 1b

  • People who live and work in congregate living settings, like prisons, shelters for the homeless, drug and alcohol treatment, psychiatric facilities, rehabilitation, and specialized services housing
  • First responders, like law enforcement officers, paramedics, EMT’s and firefighters
  • Service providers working with high-risk populations and attend persons in their home or a congregate living facility
  • Staff at senior centers or day programs for seniors and those with intellectual disabilities
  • People who are over the age of 65
  • People who have certain high-risk medical conditions like:
    • Cancer
    • Chronic kidney disease
    • Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
    • Heart conditions, such as heart failure, coronary artery disease, or cardiomyopathies
    • Immunocompromised state (weakened immune system) from solid organ transplant, HIV, use of oral corticosteroids, or use of other immune weakening medications
    • Obesity and severe obesity (body mass index [BMI] ≥30 kg/m2)
    • Sickle cell disease
    • Smoking
    • Types 1 and 2 diabetes mellitus
    • Down Syndrome
    • Pregnancy
    • People with intellectual disabilities
  • People who work in public transit
  • People who work in food distribution, prep, and service
  • Teachers, school staff, and licensed childcare staff
  • People who are customer-facing and work in high-volume essential retail like pharmacies, hardware stores, big box stores, gas stations, automotive repair shops, and similar retail.
  • People who work in manufacturing
  • Clergy

Philadelphia Phase 1c

  • Sanitation workers
  • Maintenance and janitorial staff
  • Utility workers
  • Postal and package delivery workers
  • Higher education staff
  • Finance: public facing, non-remote positions in the finance industry
  • Transportation workers such as airport and train workers and taxi or rideshare drivers
  • Construction workers
  • IT & telecommunications workers
  • Members of the press
  • Legal industry
  • Public health workers
  • People receiving home and community-based services as defined by the PA Dept of Human Services
  • Landscaping workers
  • Government workers
  • Election Board workers
  • Social services workers
  • Unpaid caregivers of medically vulnerable people

Phase 2

Everyone who doesn’t fit into one of the categories above is not currently eligible to receive vaccine.

The full list of those not currently eligible can be found in the Health Department’s COVID-19 Vaccine Priority Eligibility Recommendations.

Register your interest to receive COVID vaccine here