Plan on two trips to the same site for your COVID vaccine

If you're eligible for a vaccine, local and state health officials say, you can go anywhere you can find one to get it.

But there's a catch – you'll need to go back to the same location for your second required dose.

WRAL News has heard from viewers who drove to outlying counties for their first shot, but were hoping to get their second dose closer to home.

That's not how the tracking system works, says Wake County Health Department vaccination chief Ryan Jury: "Absolutely not."

Jury says your second dose will be shipped to the same site where you got your first dose. For Pfizer, it's shipped to that location three weeks later, and for Moderna, it's four weeks.

While it may not be the most convenient arrangement for everyone, Jury says, it's how the state makes sure you have a second dose of the same vaccine, and you get it on time.

It also ensures you're not competing with people trying to schedule their first dose.

In most cases, Jury says, health departments and hospitals will set up your appointment for your second shot at the time you get your first shot.