Confederated Tribes Of The Umatilla Reservation Open Vaccines To Anyone In 11 Counties

By Anna King April 12, 2021

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The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation are opening a two-day mass vaccination event to any resident age 16 and above who resides in the 11 counties that span the tribes’ ceded territory. The offer is open to anyone, not just tribal members.

The 11 counties include: Benton, Walla Walla, Columbia and Garfield counties in Washington and Morrow, Umatilla, Union, Wallowa, Grant, Baker and Malheur counties in Oregon.

“We have more than 1,700 first doses to provide but as of (Monday) morning only 600 appointments are filled,” Yellowhawk tribal health authority leader Lisa Guzman said in a press release. “We are eager to support our surrounding counties and get more people in the door.”

The mass vaccination event will open Tuesday, April 13 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Wildhorse Resort & Casino. People can walk in for an appointment or register online. For more information or to register by phone, call 541-240-8733.

The National Guard will be on hand to administer the vaccine along with staff from Yellowhawk. Appointments for the second dose will be made via email after people receive their first dose this week. The second dose will be provided approximately 21 days later.

Yellowhawk will schedule another mass vaccination event in May to provide first doses to an additional 2,000 people. All residents in the 11 counties will be eligible for that event as well.

The ceded territory of the Confederated tribes encompasses the 6.4 million acres, which the Walla Walla, Umatilla, and Cayuse people relinquished to the U.S. government in the Treaty of 1855. The tribes reserved other rights for hunting, fishing, gathering and traditional purposes throughout the ceded territory.

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