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Federal government sending additional help to Michigan to speed up vaccinations

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(WXYZ) — At Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's request, the federal government is sending in more than 200 federal personnel to help at three mass vaccination sites, including DeVos Place in Grand Rapids, Ford Field in Detroit and TCF in Detroit. Michigan has continued to reach its daily dose goal of 100,000 shots in arms, with 6 million doses administered in the state so far.

RELATED: Michigan sees drop in COVID-19 cases & positivity rate after massive surge

Already, 47 percent of Michigan residents have gotten at least one dose of a COVID vaccine.

“We appreciate the support from our federal partners, especially adding additional boots on the ground to allow for more shots in arms more quickly,” said Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. "We are still fighting this virus, and we must continue masking up, socially distancing, washing our hands, and crucially, getting vaccinated. I will continue fighting to make sure Michigan gets the support it needs so we can get back to normal sooner."

MAP: Search COVID-19 variants by county across Michigan

The federal personnel will serve in both clinical and non-clinical roles at vaccination sites, a release states, and are being deployed from the Department of Defense, U.S. Coast Guard and the U.S. Forest Service. Additionally, more ambulance personnel will be made available at the sites listed.

“This deployment is a part of our continued commitment to support the State of Michigan's vaccination effort," said Kevin M. Sligh, FEMA Region 5 Acting Regional Administrator. "Along with these personnel, FEMA will work together with the state to identify any additional resources that can be brought to bear to vaccinate Michiganders as quickly as possible.”

Here's how you can get vaccinated:

  • Residents who don't have access to the internet or who need assistance navigating the vaccine scheduling process can call the COVID-19 Hotline at 888-535-6136 (press 1) Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Additional Coronavirus information and resources:

View a global coronavirus tracker with data from Johns Hopkins University.

See complete coverage on our Coronavirus Continuing Coverage page.

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