The Northeast Health District opened a vaccination and testing site for COVID-19 on Tuesday at 355 Oneta St. in Athens, according to a press release from the Georgia Department of Public Health.
Georgia has started offering COVID-19 vaccines to people aged 65 and over and first responders. The vaccine is now available to health professionals and residents of long-term care facilities.
The new drive-thru vaccination station was opened to meet demand, according to the note. Although there were previously drive-thru test sites on Mitchell Bridge Road in Athens and the Winterville Center for Community and Culture, both were closed.
Eligible persons are required to make an appointment online or over the phone. Priority is given to people living or working in the Northeast Health District – which includes Barrow, Clarke, Elbert, Greene, Jackson, Madison, Morgan, Oconee, Oglethorpe and Walton counties. Vaccines and tests are free on site.
The two available vaccines, from Moderna and Pfizer, demonstrated similar potential side effects, including temporary arm pain, fatigue, headache, muscle and joint pain and fever. The vaccines will be administered in two doses at intervals of several weeks and have been 94-95% effective in clinical trials.
Despite the availability of the vaccine, Dr. Stephen Goggans, district health director, warned in the disclosure that supply is limited and urged people to continue wearing masks in public and to practice social detachment, even when the vaccine is released.
Correction: Dr. Stephen Goggans’ name was misspelled in an earlier version of this article. Red & Black regrets this error, and it has now been fixed.