J.C. Derrick
Florida Department of Health and the Florida Division of Emergency Management are hosting a walk-up vaccine clinic Thursday at Fanning Springs.
“This is part of the governor’s outreach to reach more rural communities,” said David Peaton, assistant director of Levy County Emergency Management. “The governor’s office has several of these planned.”
Fanning Springs State Park straddles both Gilchrist and Levy counties, but Thursday’s event will take place on the Levy County side at the Wayside picnic area. The clinic will remain open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and administer the Pfizer vaccine to anyone ages 16 and older.
“If you’re 16-17, you have to bring a parent or guardian, because they will have to sign the consent form,” Peaton said.
Peaton said Levy County has continued to see lower demand for COVID-19 vaccines in recent weeks, which he attributed to a combination of fewer people still seeking the vaccine and its wider availability.
“In Levy County alone we have Walgreens, CVS, Winn Dixie, Walmart and at least one local pharmacy that are all providing vaccinations to the public… at least seven sites counting the [department of health],” Peaton said.
As of April 20, vaccine administration sites in Levy County reported 10,331 residents had received at least one shot. Among those, 7,190 received either the one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine or both doses of the Moderna or Pfizer vaccines.
“You’re looking at over 25 percent of the total population in the county that has had at least one shot,” Peaton said.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, Levy County has documented 3,312 COVID-19 cases and attributed 49 deaths to the disease.