Philadelphia: The Center City Vaccination Center Is Now Providing Second Dose Vaccinations

Philadelphia PA

27 March, 2021

5:38 PM

Description

Press release from the City of Philadelphia : March 25, 2021 James Garrow Board of Health, Department of Public Health On March 2nd, the City of Philadelphia, in partnership with FEMA, launched the largest COVID-19 vaccination site in southeastern Pennsylvania. Capable of vaccinating up to 6,000 Philadelphians every day, this site quickly established itself as a model of efficiency and safety, and was able to vaccinate more than 100,000 Philadelphians in the first few weeks. The clinic was divided into three distinct phases: three weeks of first doses, three weeks of second doses, and two weeks of single-doses. First doses The plan for the Center City Vaccination Center was that they would provide first doses of Pfizer vaccine for three weeks. After two weeks, the City and FEMA changed their model to ensure that Philadelphians who live in zip codes with the lowest vaccination rates can get equitable access. This walk-up model significantly improved racial equity in vaccine administration over the first two weeks of the clinic. Second doses After three weeks of providing first doses to 121,703 Philadelphia residents, the CCVC switched operations to begin giving these folks their second doses and getting them fully vaccinated. Problem Appointments While the Health Department was planning for the switchover, it was discovered that a number of people had signed up for appointments to get their first dose on days that were only supposed to be for people to get their second dose. While the City wants everyone to be vaccinated, this clinic can only handle people who are there for second doses. The Health Department went through and canceled more than 11,000 of these invalid appointments and has worked to remind folks that if they didn't get a first dose of vaccine there they should not show up at the Convention Center. This should no longer be a problem as there are no more first doses being given at the Center City Vaccination Center. Anyone that got their first dose of vaccine at the Center City Vaccination Center should show up on the day of their appointment. If they are unsure about when their appointment is, they should bring the vaccine card they got during their first visit and they'll be let in to get a second dose. Single doses After everyone who is eligible gets their second doses, the Center City Vaccination Center will reconfigure again to provide the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Stay tuned and be sure to sign up on the City's VaccineInterest form to be ready for when appointments are available. Register your interest to receive COVID vaccine here This press release was produced by the City of Philadelphia.The views expressed here are the author's own.