Walmart’s move from Lem Turner Road from Modern vaccine to Pfizer causes confusion for some seniors

JACKSONVILLE, Florida. – The Walmart store on Lem Turner Road in Jacksonville’s Northside will administer the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine, according to a statement the company sent to News4Jax on Thursday.

The statement said that while the store at 12100 Lem Turner Road transitions from the Moderna vaccine to Pfizer, Walmart is directing patients to two nearby locations to receive their second dose of the Moderna vaccine. These locations are the Walmart store at 6830 Normandy Blvd. and the store at 13227 City Square Drive.

The statement also said that Walmart pharmacists are reaching out to patients who received their first dose at the Lem Turner Road store to schedule their appointment for the second dose of Moderna vaccine at the Normandy Boulevard store or at City Square Drive. .

Northside resident Jacqueline Richardson, 71, said she and other family members were in a confused situation when they learned they would not be able to get their second dose of the Modern COVID-19 vaccine at the Walmart site on Lem Turner Road.

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“I’m frustrated and I know how to use a computer, but it didn’t make sense to go through all of that,” said Richardson.

Richardson said that on February 18, she and other relatives in her age group received the first dose of the Moderna vaccine. She said that after receiving the injection, they were told to go home and make an appointment online to receive the second dose.

“When I went online to sign up, I said there were no hours available. The next day, I checked, I was saying the same thing. I waited until Monday, checked and said the same thing, ”explained Richardson.

She called the store and said she spoke to a pharmacy technician who said, “The governor had removed the Modern vaccine and was sending Pfizer to them.”

She said the technician she spoke to could not help her and also seemed confused about what to do.

“She said, ‘You can check with River City,’ said Richardson. “I told her that I checked there, and she’s saying the same thing online: no consultation available.”

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Richardson said she contacted the health department and was directed to the Florida vaccines website to search for Walmart locations where she could make an appointment for her second dose of the Moderna vaccine.

“So there were none available in the city of Jacksonville,” she said. “The closest to us was in Leon County, which is Tallahassee.”

She later learned that Edwards Waters College was offering the Modern vaccine. She also knew that she and her relatives would not have to make an appointment – just show up.

RELATED: Where to get COVID-19 vaccines in Northeast Florida

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned people about mixing vaccines, except in “exceptional situations” because there was not enough research into the side effects of mixing vaccines.

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Subsequently, Walmart’s corporate office issued the statement to News4Jax which says:

“The Lem Turner store will administer the Pfizer vaccine to serve even more people in our communities.

“As the Lem Turner store transitions from the Moderna vaccine to Pfizer, we are directing patients to two nearby locations to receive their second doses of Moderna. These locations are our store in Normandy (6830 Normandy Jax) and our store at the airport (13227 City Square Blvd Jax).

“Walmart pharmacists are reaching out to patients who received their first dose at Lem Turner to schedule their second Modern vaccination appointment at one of the two stores listed above.”

Pfizer’s vaccines will be applied at a vaccination event that will take place from Thursday to Monday outside Walmart on Lem Turner Road. Eligible patients can schedule an appointment at www.walmart.com/COVIDvaccine.