ENFIELD, Conn. — A new mass vaccination site opened in Enfield on Monday, in an effort to get as many people vaccinated as possible.
"It is a race between the vaccine and the virus and we have to win as fast as possible," U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney said.
The new site is located at the Enfield Town Annex, and it is a partnership between Johnson Memorial Hospital and the town of Enfield. It provides a location for people in Northern Connecticut to get vaccinated - with the goal of making it as easy as possible.
"This is an easy location. Eventually, this is going to help our neighbors as well. We are a good neighbor here in town," Enfield Mayor Mike Ludwick said.
The site is located at the Enfield Annex - the old Fermi High School - at 124 North Maple Street.
"I think that's a huge, huge issue in Connecticut right now to make sure the vaccine gets to everyone and equally. And setting them in these population centers is what we need in this state," said state representative Tom Arnone.
The site will replace the vaccine clinic at Johnson Memorial Hospital, which closed last week. People with appointments for that clinic can now go to the one in Enfield instead.
"They have moved them to this week here, making sure that nobody gets canceled and everybody who was on the list will get their scheduled vaccines," said Dr. Asha Dhamija.
While the site is only serving those rescheduled appointments now, it will eventually be able to serve more than 640 people a day depending on supply.
The site will be open Monday through Friday.
The clinic opens just in time for the next phase of Connecticut's vaccine rollout, which includes hundreds of thousands more eligible people.
On Monday, teachers, childcare professionals, and everyone ages 55 and up became eligible for inoculations. Those meeting that criteria can start booking appointments and getting shots today.
With only 130,000 doses of the vaccine coming into the state every day, leaders are urging patience.
Officials said in a statement, "Age is one of the strongest factors contributing to COVID-19 deaths, with 96 percent of COVID-19 deaths in Connecticut occurring in people over the age of 55."
The planned schedule is as follows:
- March 1, 2021: Expands to age group 55 to 64
- March 22, 2021: Expands to age group 45 to 54
- April 12, 2021: Expands to age group 35 to 44
- May 3, 2021: Expands to age group 16 to 34