GLOBE, Ariz. — In most parts of the country, getting a coronavirus vaccine can feel like trying to win the lottery, scouring the internet for appointments under complex eligibility standards that vary from state to state, and even county to county.

GLOBE, Ariz. — In most parts of the country, getting a coronavirus vaccine can feel like trying to win the lottery, scouring the internet for appointments under complex eligibility standards that vary from state to state, and even county to county.In Kentucky and Indiana, anyone over 60 can get vaccinated but you have to be 65 or 70 most everywhere else. About 18 states are offering shots to grocery workers, and 32 are vaccinating teachers. Cancer or heart problems? It depends on where you live.Then there is Gila County, Ariz., where any resident over the age of 18 can walk into a clinic without an appointment right now and get a vaccine.

“The whole process is incredibly easy,” said Frank Struck, 24, an electrician and maintenance worker who got inoculated at a hospital in Globe, a town in the county, which stretches across the desert and pine forests about 90 miles east and northeast of Phoenix. “No bureaucracy, no crazy lines — you just go in, get the shot and come out with peace of mind.”

“I’m so thankful to be in this position right now,” said Gina Paul, 53, a retired municipal clerk who was getting her second dose on Friday at the hospital in Globe, the county seat of 7,500 people, which was founded in the 1870s as a mining camp.Ms. Paul said she got her first dose a few weeks ago, after taking her mother-in-law to get vaccinated and telling hospital staff members that she was open to it as well if they had any leftovers at the end of a day. They called Ms. Paul back, and she promptly got a shot. Now she is trying to persuade her 19-year-old son to get one.

With a limited supply of vaccine to offer to the millions of Americans clamoring for it, the country has faced a choice from the beginning: Deliver shots as swiftly as possible by allowing anyone who wanted one to get one, or target scarce supplies to the most vulnerable first.Unlock more free articles.Create an account or log inThe federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended the latter course, and as a result, state officials have agonized over who is entitled and who is not — in some cases, slowing deliveries to make sure the neediest went first.Gila County started off with a set of qualifying standards as well. But it has been so successful at vaccinating its residents that it is now one of the first places in the United States to open eligibility to the general population, offering a glimpse of what vaccination could start to look like in the rest of the country weeks or months from now.Image