City, TCH aim to vaccinate 5,000 at 1-day clinic

The city of Houston and Texas Children’s Hospital are aiming to vaccinate 5,000 people Friday ahead of the holidays at a oneday clinic at the George R. Brown Convention Center.

The site will open from noon to 8 p.m. on the third floor of the convention center. Anyone over the age of 5 can get an initial dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, and the clinic will offer booster shots to those who are eligible.

Appointments are available online and walk-ins will be welcome. Metro is offering free rides to those who need one, and parking will be free for those who drive.

Officials said they are focusing the vaccine drive on families and children. The site will have toys and coloring books for kids.

“In the holiday season, families and friends will gather to celebrate, and the vaccines will help us to stay safe,” Mayor Sylvester Turner said. “You know you’re going to gather, you know you’re going to be inside as well as outside, you know you’re going to be having conversations, and we need to do everything to keep everyone safe.”

COVID-19 metrics have started to tick up in recent weeks, and the city has detected the new omicron variant in its wastewater plants. Early signs indicate that strain may be more transmissible than previous ones but cause less severe disease. Medical officials have emphasized the delta variant remains dominant in the area.

About 720 people per day tested positive for COVID-19 in the Houston area last week, up from 232 new cases the week before and 466 new daily cases last month. The positivity rate at the Texas Medical Center was 2.7 percent, up slightly from 2.5 percent the previous week.

The medical center was admitting an average of 68 new COVID-19 patients per day last week, up from 56 the week earlier. There were roughly 500 COVID-19 patients in Houston-area hospitals Sunday, down from 519 a week ago.

As of Dec. 5, 73 percent of Houstonians 5 and over have had their first dose and 62 percent are fully vaccinated.

The figures are 70 percent and 60 percent in Texas, and 73 percent and 61 percent in the United States.