Confused about when you might get the coronavirus vaccine in Colorado? Use our guide to find your spot in line.

Update on April 2, 2021: When we launched this guide, Colorado’s vaccine eligibility plan was a maze of phases and subphases and sub-subphases. But as of today, it’s now a one-question quiz: Are you at least 16 years old? Click here if the answer is YES. Click here if the answer is NO. And best of luck as you search for your shot.

Back in those simpler days of … late last year, Colorado’s plan for rolling out the coronavirus vaccine seemed pretty clear: Phases 1, 2 and 3.

But then Phase 1 became Phase 1a and 1b; and then Phase 1b was split with a mysterious dotted line; and now Phase 1b has been fully divided into sub-subphases 1b.1, 1b.2, 1b.3 and 1b.4.

Feeling lost amid all the parsing? We’ve put together a click-through guide to the state’s vaccine rollout plan. It is current as of April 2, 2021, which is when Colorado opened eligibility to anyone 16 and older . We’ll do our best to keep it updated when the state’s plan changes again, though please bear with us. Even for professional updaters, this has been tough to follow.

 Just answer the following questions, and we’ll help you find your place in line.

 

Question 1

Do you live in a nursing home, assisted-living center or other long-term care facility or do you work in one?

• YES
• NO

 

Question 2

Are you a health care worker who has contact with patients? This includes people who work in dentists’ offices, hospices and pharmacies, as well as home health care workers.

• YES
• NO

 

Question 3

Do you work as a firefighter, police officer, corrections officer or funeral services provider, or are you a public health professional who is responding to the COVID-19 pandemic?

• YES
• NO

 

Question 4

Are you a member of the Colorado legislature?

• YES
• NO

 

Question 5

Are you at least 70 years old?

• YES
• NO

 

Question 6

Are you at least 65 years old?

• YES
• NO

 

Question 7

Are you a teacher, substitute teacher, bus driver, administrator or provider of other services inside a pre-K through 12 school? Or are you a child care worker at a licensed child care provider?

• YES
• NO

 

Question 8

Are you an employee of the state executive or judicial branches who is identified as being critical for the continuity of state government? (This is a small group and your boss will tell you if you’re in it.)

• YES
• NO

 

Question 9

Are you at least 60 years old?

• YES
• NO

 

Question 10

Are you a frontline essential worker in the grocery or agricultural industries, including agricultural processing such as meatpacking?

• YES
• NO

 

Question 11

Do you suffer from one of the following conditions: chronic kidney disease; COPD; diabetes mellitus; Down syndrome; specific heart conditions such as heart failure, cardiomyopathies, coronary heart disease or severe valvular or congenital heart disease; obesity (meaning a BMI of over 30); or sickle cell disease? Or, are you currently receiving treatment for cancer or have received treatment for cancer within the last month? Or have you received a solid organ transplant? Or do you have a disability that prevents you from wearing a mask? Or are you pregnant?

• YES
• NO

 

Question 12

Are you at least 50 years old?

• YES
• NO

 

Question 13

Are you a frontline essential worker in at least one of the following industries or businesses: food service (including restaurant workers), manufacturing, U.S. Postal Service, public transit or specialized transportation, grocery, public health, human services, or journalism? Or are you a faith leader, or do you work as a provider of care for people experiencing homelessness? Or are you a student-facing instructor, professor, vocational educator or staff member providing safety and other support services at a college, university or community college?

• YES
• NO

 

Question 14

Are you an employee of a local government who is identified as being critical for the continuity of that government? Or are you a state government employee identified as being needed to continue your agency’s services? (This is a relatively small group and your boss will tell you if you’re in it.)

• YES
• NO

 

Question 15

Did you participate in a clinical trial for a COVID-19 vaccine and did you receive a placebo during that trial?

• YES
• NO

 

Question 16

Are you at least 16 years old?

• YES
• NO

 

YOU ARE ALREADY ELIGIBLE

Congratulations! You are currently eligible to receive a coronavirus vaccine.

There are multiple ways to sign up for an appointment. The state’s COVID-19 website includes links to sign up for community vaccination sites and a county-by-county provider list. It also has a map that shows where vaccine shipments have been sent in the past two weeks, though a supplier’s availability will vary.

Prefer the older-fashioned way? The state has a 24-hour hotline to answer vaccine questions: 1-877-CO VAX CO (1-877-268-2926).

Other places to look for appointments include www.comassvax.org, which is run by the state. Appointments through the U.S. Federal Retail Pharmacy Program — which includes Safeway, Walmart and Kroger stores — are at vaccinefinder.org.

Individual hospitals and health systems also have their own sign-up procedures. The most effective way often involves creating an account in those health systems’ patient portals and then actively looking for available appointments. But hospitals and other health care providers, like Kaiser Permanente, also have sign-up forms where the provider will call you when there are appointments available.

Think this isn’t your place? Click here to start over.

 

THERE ARE NO VACCINES APPROVED FOR YOU

You are age 15 or younger. Sorry, but there are no coronavirus vaccines yet proven safe or effective for you to receive.

This could change, though. At least two companies, Pfizer and Moderna, are testing their vaccines in children. So best to keep your eyes open for news. The state could add you to the priority structure if those vaccines are approved for kids.

The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment has more information at cocovidvaccine.org. Prefer the older-fashioned way? The state has a 24-hour hotline to answer vaccine questions: 1-877-CO VAX CO (1-877-268-2926).

Think this isn’t your place? Click here to start over.