Clark County to receive 2,750 COVID-19 doses next week
Clark County will receive 2,750 doses of COVID-19 vaccine to be used on residents ages 75 and older or those with a developmental or intellectual disability, according to the Clark County Combined Health District.
The health district, in partnership with Mercy Health, will begin scheduling vaccination appointments this morning for those who qualify next week for the next part of Phase 1b, according to a statement from the health district.
Individuals age 75 and older or those with a developmental or intellectual disability and one of the following conditions are eligible to make an appointment: cerebral palsy; spina bifida; severe congenital heart disease requiring hospitalization within the past year; severe type 1 diabetes requiring hospitalization within the past year; inherited metabolic disorders including phenylketonuria; severe neurological disorders including epilepsy, hydrocephaly, and microcephaly; severe genetic disorders including Down syndrome, fragile X syndrome, Prader-Willi syndrome, Turner syndrome, and muscular dystrophy; severe lung disease, including asthma requiring hospitalization within the past year, and cystic fibrosis; sickle cell anemia; and alpha and beta-thalassemia; and solid organ transplant patients.
The doses will be distributed between the county’s seven providers, which include the health district, Mercy Health, Rocking Horse Community Health Center, the New Carlisle Community Health Center and all three Springfield-area Kroger pharmacy locations.
This week the county received 1,800 doses of vaccine to be used for those who are 80 and older. The health district began giving shots on Tuesday morning. Rocking Horse began vaccinating residents on Thursday.
That’s when Roger Evans, retired Springfield Police Division chief, received his first dose of the vaccine. He said he was happy to get vaccinated when he was given the opportunity so he wasn’t, “part of the problem.”
“If you don’t get vaccinated when it’s your turn, you become part of the problem. You become where you’re able to give it to someone else. I have grandkids, I have a wife and I have other family members and people that I associate with, and I don’t want to be a carrier contributing to the spread of the pandemic,” Evans said.
Evans said misinformation spread on social media has led people to believe the vaccine “isn’t safe.”
Stacy Lee, Director of Operations for Rocking Horse, said not only is the vaccine safe but the community health center also has not had any bad reactions to the vaccine and staff is trained on what to do “in the case of an emergency.”
Lee said the setup for the vaccine at Rocking Horse was “very fast” once the community health center learned it was selected to be a distributor last week.