MANATEE COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) – A new registration system for the coronavirus vaccine is up and running in Manatee County.

Individuals 65 and older can be in the county’s vaccination standby pool as vaccines become available. They can preregister by phone or online.

Two people can be on one form together and attend their appointment together as well. Vaccine recipients will be selected at random with the county’s lottery system. They will be contacted by county leaders when their name is drawn.

There are two ways to register for the waitlist:

• Up to two people at a time can join the standby pool by filling out an online form available at vax.mymanatee.org.
• Dial the County’s 311 Call Center to ask for help joining the vaccine standby pool. 311 Call Center operators can assist from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. each weekday.

On the day of the appointment, seniors will need to bring the following items with them:

• An email receipt or unique number they receive from the 311 Call Center
• A Department of Health consent form available at www.mymanatee.org/vaccine (311 callers can assist with the form for those without internet access)
• A valid ID showing age 65 or older. 

The county’s original registration website crashed earlier in the week. Despite the glitch, 6,000 individuals were vaccinated at the drive-thru location set up in Bennett Park.

Gov. Ron DeSantis applauded the system set up in the Bradenton park when he stopped by the site on Thursday. The governor says more doses of the vaccine should be on the way to Manatee County soon.