Thursday, December 10th 2020, 10:39 pm
The Oklahoma City-County Health Department plans to construct a drive-thru facility for testing and vaccinations with the goal of opening as COVID-19 vaccines become available for the general public.
The facility “will certainly be one of the most important things we ever put on this campus,” said Dr. Patrick McGough, director of the OCCHD. “We’re really excited about it.”
Image Provided By: OCCHD
Image Provided By: OCCHD
Image Provided By: OCCHD
The department’s board of health voted on Thursday in support of constructing the drive-thru facility and a warehouse next to its offices on Northeast 63rd Street, financed by up to $7 million in municipal bonds.
Construction could start as soon as February, according to Chief Operating Officer Phil Maytubby, and completed by late summer.
Image Provided By: OCCHD
Image Provided By: OCCHD
Shipments of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine are expected to arrive next week.
The initial doses will be given to frontline medical workers as well as residents and staff of long-term care facilities.
McGough said the department could make the vaccine available to the public as early as April, but that’s subject to change.
“There are so many pieces before it actually gets in our hands,” he said.
While the drive-thru and storage facilities will be used for COVID-19 testing and vaccination immediately upon completion, McGough said the department will use them in the future for other procedures like influenza vaccinations.
“Even if COVID was not here and not with us, we’ve needed this facility for years. We’ve been at the mercy of other people, other locations throughout the city and the county,” McGough said, adding OCCHD will be able to control the days and hours of operation of the new facilities.
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