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PITTSBURGH – The Health Department announced today that it will be opening three additional COVID-19 vaccine points of dispensing (POD) before the end of the month. The PODs will be staffed through a variety of community partnerships and will include a temporary site in Oakland, a site for targeted outreach in the Central Hill District, and a community POD in Ross Township.
All sites will be by appointment only with anyone arriving without an appointment, or not meeting priority criteria being turned away. There are no walk-up registrations available. As has been the case, all appointments will be announced through Allegheny Alerts and then posted on the county’s COVID Vaccine page. Residents without Internet access, or having difficulty navigating the online registration system, may contact 2-1-1 for assistance in scheduling when appointments are available.
Through a partnership with the University of Pittsburgh, the Peterson Events Center will be used as a vaccination site beginning tomorrow, March 17, through the end of next week with approximately 1,000 vaccinations being offered a day. Second dose appointments will be provided at the same location in the 28- to 42-day window recommended by the CDC. Online links and phone registration for the clinics held this week were announced this morning via Allegheny Alerts and posted on the Health Department’s COVID vaccine page.
Free parking will be available at the garage at Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall & Museum off of Bigelow Boulevard with free shuttles run between the garage and the Peterson Event Center during the hours of operation. Staff will be on site at the garage to greet people, conduct temperature checks and help them access the shuttle which will let them off at the ADA entrance for the Peterson Event Center. A parking lot nearby the center will also be available with limited spots for those who drop off others for vaccination and wish to wait in their vehicle.
The Health Department is providing the vaccine, while students and faculty from Pitt’s Schools of Pharmacy, Nursing, Medicine, Dental Medicine, Health and Rehabilitation Sciences and Graduate School of Public Health will serve as vaccinators.
Through a partnership with the Central Baptist Church and the Center for Integrative Health at Duquesne University, a targeted outreach POD will open at the church beginning on March 22. The clinic will be used to underscore the county Health Department’s role in addressing gaps in vaccine distribution. The site will have limited vaccinations available which will be used to target specific communities and populations who have not yet been reached through traditional means.
The Ross Township Community Center will also be a POD site beginning on March 24. The clinics will be staffed by Health Department staff and members of the Medical Reserve Corps (MRC). As the Ross site ramps up, the Monroeville POD will be used for second dose only clinics for those who received their first doses there before that POD is phased out. This shift will allow the department to stand up and staff additional locations throughout the county, including the Ross site.
The Castle Shannon POD continues to operate and is now being staffed by volunteers with the American Red Cross and employees of the Medical Rescue Team South Authority (MRTSA) through agreements with the county. Emergency Services staff also continue to support the operation of the POD. Vaccine clinics in senior living facilities also continue to be held, focusing first on public facilities and then private facilities with low-income or subsidized housing for its senior residents. Vaccines are being administered by Health Department and Emergency Services staff with support from Human Services staff.
The county Health Department continues to receive both the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines. As appointments are announced, the notifications will also note which vaccine will be used at that clinic.
Resource navigators at 2-1-1 remain available 24/7 to assist the community with questions related to the COVID-19 vaccines and any other COVID-related inquiries. Call-takers can also refer callers to the Pittsburgh Poison Center for clinical-related questions about the vaccine.
The department will continue to share information on its Vaccine Information Page (https://alleghenycounty.us/COVIDvaccine) and push out announcements through Allegheny Alerts (https://alleghenycounty.us/alerts).
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