The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is set to dole out thousands of doses of the COVID-19 vaccine in Cleveland, according to Friday reports.
“A mass coronavirus vaccination center will open on March 17 at Cleveland State University’s Wolstein Center, with the capability to vaccinate 6,000 people a day,” Cleveland.com reported.
In Friday press conference, said the following:
“Now that the supply of vaccine is significantly increasing, this is the perfect time for a large-scale clinic in Ohio to bolster our work to get shots in arms quickly, efficiently, and equitably. We welcome FEMA to Ohio and are grateful for their support and the support of Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, and Cleveland State University as we continue down the road to recovery. Ohio has held several successful mass vaccination clinics, but this long-term clinic will reach the most people yet – particularly those in Ohio’s most vulnerable populations and those who face barriers in accessing health care. In addition to this new northeast Ohio site, we remain committed to ensuring that, no matter where you live, a vaccine provider is located nearby, and we’re strengthening that commitment by also launching several new state-sponsored mass vaccination sites in other areas of the state.”
After natural disasters, FEMA uses a “Social Vulnerability Index” to prioritize its response. Ohioans over the age of 60 are eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, and according to Cleveland.com, there are more than one million people in that category in northeast Ohio.
The White House said that the Wolstein center “occupies a central and accessible, yet medically underserved, area in Cleveland,”
The Wolstein Center will operate seven days per week during its first three weeks, and DeWine said that those who receive their first dose of the vaccine in those first three weeks will be guaranteed a second dose in the fourth, fifth, or sixth week of operation.
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Pete D’Abrosca is a contributor at The Ohio Star and The Star News Network. Follow Pete on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
