FESTUS, Mo. — The first COVID-19 vaccine clinic inside an old grocery store in Jefferson County is set to take place this Thursday.
It’ll be the first of more than a dozen planned clinics with more than 21,200 doses scheduled to be administered.
The Jefferson County Health Department Board of Trustees voted earlier this month to lease the old Shop n’ Save building at 1275 N. Truman in Festus for six months and staff the space for a vaccine clinic.
The building has more than 60,000 square feet. The county health department initially estimated it would be able to administer up to 1,000 doses a day, but the latest update sent out Tuesday indicates that number has doubled.
The first clinic is set for April 1 and will serve a soft opening, the county said, with 1,000 doses of the Moderna vaccine being administered. Over a span of three weeks, the county anticipates increasing the output to 2,000 doses per event.
So far, 14 clinics are scheduled and more are in the works, including even larger clinics with the help of the Missouri National Guard. Appointments will be required and the health department plans to send out invites to those on the county’s registration list.
COVID-19 vaccine clinics scheduled so far:
- Thursday, April 1, 9am-3:30pm, 1,000 prime doses
- Monday, April 5, 8:30am-5pm, 1,400 prime doses
- Tuesday, April 6, 8:30am-5pm, 1,500 prime doses
- Wednesday, April 7, 8:30am-5pm, 1,500 prime doses
- Monday, April 12, 8:30am-5pm, 1,400 prime doses
- Tuesday, April 13, 8:30am-6pm, 1,800 prime doses
- Wednesday, April 14, 8:30am-6pm, 1,800 prime doses
- Monday, April 19, 8:30am-5pm, 1,400 prime doses
- Tuesday, April 20, 8:30am-6:30pm, 2,000 prime doses
- Wednesday, April 21, 8:30am-6:30pm, 2,000 prime doses
- Monday, April 26, 8:30am-5pm, 1400 prime doses
- Tuesday, April 27, 8:30am-6:30pm, 2,000 prime doses
- Wednesday, April 28, 8:30am-6:30pm, 2,000 prime doses
- Thursday, April 29, 8:30am-5pm, 1,000 booster doses
“We are grateful for partnerships with Missouri National Guard, City of Festus, and City of Crystal City,” the Jefferson County Health Department wrote in a news release Tuesday. “Vaccinating a large number of residents in a quick timeframe requires coordination and collaboration with community partners. We are fortunate to have excellent partners in our community committed to increasing vaccine distribution for eligible residents as soon as possible.”
Those invited to make an appointment are asked to not arrive more than 15 minutes before their scheduled timeslot and to follow traffic instructions. Drivers will need to enter the north end of the parking lot from the southbound lanes of Highway 61-67. Patients will exit from the southside of the lot and will be required to turn right.
Those who are interested in receiving the vaccine should register through the department's website. Anyone without internet access can call the county's COVID-19 Vaccine Registration Line at 636-789-8941.
On Monday, the state of Missouri opened up Phase 2 of the vaccine rollout, adding about 880,000 residents to the eligibility list.
Phase 3, which includes all Missouri adults, will be activated on April 9.
Vaccine latest:
- Here's how you can get in line for the COVID-19 vaccine
- When the St. Louis area could hit herd immunity
- Here's where you can laminate your vaccine card for free
- VERIFY: Which COVID-19 variants should you be worried about?
- COVID-19 hospitalizations remain consistent as vaccine rollout continues in Missouri, Illinois