GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) – Brown County is partnering with the City of Green Bay and other local organizations to host a free COVID-19 vaccine clinic at the Sophie Beaumont Building for people who work and live in downtown Green Bay.
While that area is seeing a lower percentage of people vaccinated for the virus, officials hope education and encouragement will help improve the numbers.
The goal is to get as many people educated, and vaccinated, as possible.
“We’ve heard in the past this 80-percent, 70-percent. But I think really the goal is to get as many people vaccinated as possible,” said Brown County Public Health Officer Anna Destree. “I do think it’s important that we stay away from the number at this point you can just encourage vaccinations.”
Destree says people should talk to doctor or public health if they still have questions.
“We really hope that people who are downtown take advantage of this opportunity here with this great partnership, and take advantage of this vaccine that we know is life-saving and is preventing severe hospitalizations and deaths,” Destree said. “We do know is that it is extremely effective at reducing those severe hospitalizations that can result in significant complications or death.”
Brown County Public Health isn’t the only entity pushing the clinic. Local groups like Downtown Green Bay Inc. and On Broadway are also encouraging businesses and employees in that area to consider getting vaccinated.
“It really boils down to how quickly it’s spreading, and what’s the comfort level of employers to say we’re more willing to welcome back all of our employees,” On Broadway Executive Director Brian Johnson told WTAQ News. “Not only from a working perspective, but recreational. To participate in events, to be able to congregate in close quarters again like we used to, that’s all a really important part of this process in terms of our recovery. So we need to see the numbers reduced in order for us to do that.”
Johnson says he understands the hesitancy, but remains in the forefront of encouraging the shots.
“It’s an unknown thing. We get that oftentimes, things that are a little new and different are sometimes scary. So I think if we can really encourage people to have those conversations with their health providers, that’s a really important thing. Get your questions answered in a safe place that allows you to get the facts,” Johnson said. “This is about providing information so that they can give that back to their staff in and make decisions for themselves. We’re not in the business of coercing people to do anything. That’s not what we’re looking to do. But it’s really about trying to maybe debunk some of the misinformation that’s out there so that people can make informed and educated decisions…What we’ve seen so far to-date is that vaccines are effective, they’re reliable, they’re safe.”
The clinics will be held in the 1st floor conference room at the Sophie Beaumont Building. That’s on the corner of Cherry Street and Jefferson Street in downtown Green Bay.
- First Dose Clinic Dates:
- October 1 – 9:00 a.m. to Noon
- October 8 – Noon to 3:00 p.m.
- Second Dose Clinic Dates:
- October 22 – 9:00 a.m. to Noon
- October 29 – Noon to 3:00 p.m.
Registration before attending is recommended, but not required. The clinics will administer the FDA-approved Pfizer vaccine.
“We do have a supply of vaccine that’s available to us here. If we run out of that supply, we have our partners, we have different routes to get vaccines. So we feel that there’s an adequate supply to carry out this clinic,” Destree added.
You can learn more on Brown County Public Health’s website.
