Camp North End hosting COVID vaccine clinic, plus Atrium releases new appointments

Camp North End will be used as a mass COVID-19 vaccination site next weekend, joining a growing list of Charlotte venues selected to more quickly and equitably distribute doses.

The clinic will run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, April 17, Mecklenburg County Medical Director Dr. Meg Sullivan announced during a news briefing Thursday. Exact details, including how many appointments will be available, are not yet finalized. Booking appointments at the clinic is not yet available.

Camp North End has shops, restaurants and food stalls, as well as growing office and arts and event space. It’s located off North Graham Street, just outside uptown.

“We’re hoping to make it large,” Sullivan said, though the scale depends on Mecklenburg’s vaccine allocation for the coming week. Health officials expect the shipment will continue to rise as vaccine production ramps up nationally.

The county health department’s baseline allocation has been 4,680 first doses of the Pfizer vaccine, Deputy Public Health Director Raynard Washington told the Observer. This week, the county also received 1,000 first doses of the Moderna vaccine and 1,900 doses of the Johnson & Johnson one-shot regimen. Thousands more of vaccine doses are distributed to other providers in and around Charlotte, including hospitals and some pharmacies.

Vaccine eligibility expanded to all adults ages 16 and older in North Carolina on Wednesday. Health officials predict everyone who wants a shot will be able to book an appointment in the coming weeks, as vaccine supply increases.

Looking for a COVID vaccine in Charlotte? The search will get easier with more supply

Mecklenburg Public Health Director Gibbie Harris on Thursday urged everyone to get immunized and protect themselves from the virus.

“We’re continuing to see deaths. That’s not acceptable, especially if we have a way to prevent that from happening,” Harris said.

“We need people to make the effort to get vaccinated. It’s worth it. It’s worth it to you, it’s worth it to the individuals around you — those you love, those you care about, those you work with. It’s important to our entire community, if we are going to be able to continue to open up and try to normalize things.”

Bank of America Stadium

Charlotte hospital system Atrium Health also announced new appointments Thursday, with mass vaccination events at the Panthers’ Bank of America Stadium through mid-May.

Appointments are available at www.thisismyshot.com.

The events include a one-shot Johnson & Johnson event Friday, a first-dose Pfizer event on Saturday and another Johnson & Johnson event Sunday. Most of the hospital system’s vaccine events are scheduled to run from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Atrium will hold additional Pfizer vaccine events on April 13, 14, 20, 21 and 27.

Second dose clinics for the Pfizer events will be held on May 1, 4, 5, 11, 12 and 18.

Anyone age 16 and up can get the Pfizer vaccine. Anyone age 18 and up can get the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

The vaccine events are open by appointment only.

“We definitely encourage everyone to go ahead and get signed up,” Atrium infectious disease expert Dr. Katie Passaretti told reporters Thursday. “…Getting our community of all ages vaccinated is really important to achieving that community protection.”

How do I get a COVID vaccine appointment in Charlotte? Here’s an updated guide

Rising vaccinations

Just over 31% of state residents are at least partially vaccinated and 21.5% are fully vaccinated as of late Wednesday, according to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services.

In Mecklenburg, 26.7% of residents are at least partially vaccinated and 17.3% are fully vaccinated, according to N.C. DHHS data. The county data does not include people who were vaccinated in Mecklenburg but live elsewhere, Harris said.

Officials estimate around 70%-80% of the population must be inoculated to gain herd immunity, when sufficient vaccine coverage would blunt the spread of more infections. The daily caseload and positivity rate are once again on the rise after weeks of progress, Harris warned Thursday.

Long-term care facilities in and around Charlotte are already benefiting from the effectiveness of the vaccines at preventing severe illness and death. Not a single nursing home resident has died of coronavirus-related complications in the past month, the Observer reported Wednesday.

Mecklenburg County Public Health will release new appointments at 8:30 a.m. every Wednesday, including for openings at Bojangles Coliseum. Residents should cancel duplicate appointments as soon as possible to ensure no doses are wasted, officials have repeatedly urged.

Vaccine info in Mecklenburg County: Schedule online at starmed.care or call Public Health at 980-314-9400 (option 3 for English and option 8 for Spanish. Visit Mecknc.gov/covid-19 to join the county’s waitlist or to apply for home-based vaccination. For other providers, find your spot via the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services’ MySpot.NC.gov.