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Phoenix is stepping up efforts to get residents vaccinated against COVID-19 as the city’s vaccination rates continue to slow.
The city’s COVID-19 mobile test vans will now offer vaccines on certain days and locations, in addition to testing.
Mayor Kate Gallego called it “the next step towards defeating COVID-19”.
Her and new city manager Jeff Barton, along with fire officials and city workers, made the announcement Monday during a vaccination and testing event at Isaac Middle School in western Phoenix. Barton called it “an opportunity for the community” and vital.
What types of vaccines are available?
City screening and vaccination events are free and do not require insurance.
All three types of vaccines – Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson single dose – are available in mobile units run by Vincere Cancer Center, said Dr Vershalee Shukla, co-founder of the center, which partners with Phoenix to offer tests and vaccines.
The mobile units help make vaccine testing easy and accessible, including for children who are back to school, said Shukla.
Events organized by Premier Lab Solutions offer the Moderna vaccine.
Phoenix first partnered with Vincere in August 2020 to launch a mobile test van with fast results. A second try of in partnership with Premier Lab Solutions hit the streets in February as the city expanded its efforts to bring COVID-19 testing to neighborhoods in need.
The two vans performed 146,000 COVID-19 tests in nearly 360 testing events across the city, Barton said.
Other partners for testing and vaccinations include Equality Health and Family Tree Healthcare Clinic.
Maricopa County lags behind Arizona and the US average
Maricopa County still has high community transmission of COVID-19, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
And the county’s vaccination rate is lower than the national and national averages.
About 47.2% of all residents of Maricopa County had been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, compared to 50.4% of all Arizonans and 54.7% nationally, according to CDC data on Monday.
Among eligible people aged 12 and older, 55.7% of eligible county residents had been fully immunized, compared to 59.1% of eligible Arizonans and 64% of eligible Americans.
Upcoming Phoenix Screening and Vaccination Events
A list of upcoming city-sponsored COVID-19 vaccination and testing events is available online at phoenix.gov. There is also online pre-registration information for appointments through Vincere Cancer Center and Premier Lab Solutions. Upcoming events include:
- September 21: 1 pm-7pm at Uncle Sam’s, 3217 E. Shea Blvd. Tests and vaccination. Van of the Vincere Cancer Center.
- September 22: 1 pm-7pm at El Reposo Park, 502 E. Alta Vista Road. Tests and vaccination. Premier Lab Solutions van.
- September 23: 7:15 a.m. – 1:15 p.m. at Fry’s, 850 E. Hatcher Road. Trial. Van of the Vincere Cancer Center.
- September 24: 7:15 a.m. – 1:15 p.m. at Cholla Library, 10050 N. Metro Parkway. Tests and vaccination. Van of the Vincere Cancer Center.
- September 25: 7:15 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. at Fry’s, 6601 W. Indian School Road. Trial. Van of the Vincere Cancer Center.
- September 25: 7 am-1pm at Palo Verde Library, 4402 N. 51st Ave. Tests and vaccination. Premier Lab Solutions van.
- September 27: 7:15 a.m. – 1:15 p.m. at El Prado Park, 6428 S. 19th Ave. Testing. Van of the Vincere Cancer Center.
- September 27: 7 am-1pm at Desert West Community Center, 6501 Virginia Ave. Tests and vaccination. Premier Lab Solutions van.
- September 28: 1 pm-7pm at Chicanos Por La Causa, 6850 W. Indian School Road. Tests and vaccination. Van of the Vincere Cancer Center.
- September 29: 1 pm-7pm at the Desert Sage Library, 7602 W Encanto Blvd. Tests and vaccination. Premier Lab Solutions van.
- September 30: 7:15 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. at Cortez Park, 3434 W. Dunlap Ave. Tests. Van of the Vincere Cancer Center.
Other vaccination locations in Maricopa County – including community events and places like pharmacies and clinics – are listed at County Vaccination Locations at maricopa.gov.
Contact the reporter at [email protected] or at 602-444-4282. Follow her on Twitter @alsteinbach. Contact reporter Jonathan Hernandez Morales at [email protected].
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