As COVID-19 vaccination hesitancy persists in the county, an upcoming clinic is turning to incentives like Chick-fil-A and Walmart gift cards to the first people who come out to get their inoculations.
The free clinic will be open to anyone 12 and older from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday in the parking lot adjacent to Habitat ReStore on the corner of Malvern Avenue and Church Street. No appointment is required.
There will be Spanish translators available and minimal paperwork required. No insurance, documentation or IDs are required.
Targeting minority, homeless and underserved communities, the clinic is being hosted by The Giving Team Inc. and Oaklawn Center on Aging. Smith Drug and Compounding Inc. will be administering the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to anyone 12 years and older.
"With so many COVID restrictions being taken away, and we still haven't met our herd immunity, we haven't met anything -- but now with the economy, and people saying we need to get back to where we are, COVID still hasn't gone away. ... COVID's still here, we're still in a pandemic," Janice Davis, Giving Team president and founder, said.
According to the latest news release from the Hot Springs/Garland County COVID-19 Task Force, County Health Officer Dr. Gene Shelby said Monday that, compared to other populous counties in Arkansas, Garland County has the lowest number of COVID-19 cases per capita, as the county remains on its six-week low plateau of new and active cases.
Despite this optimistic news, Shelby said that last June the county saw a spike in cases -- a situation he hopes does not repeat in 2021.
"Bottom line is vaccinate, vaccinate, vaccinate," Shelby said in the release. "That is how we've gotten to where we are at, and we need to push it on to the end zone. The vaccines are continuing to prove themselves to be very effective, very safe, and we've certainly got the availability."
Kathy Packard, executive director of the Oaklawn Center on Aging, said she hopes the gift cards will encourage people to come.
"I feel like Janice Davis and the Giving Team have gone above and beyond, and I don't know what more the community can do to get people out and get them vaccinated," Packard said.
Whether getting a vaccination or not, she said she encourages anyone with questions to attend the clinic to get clarification from the experts administering them.
"Don't take social media's word for this," Packard said. "Come talk to a professional about it and get some scientific answers."
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EDITOR'S NOTE: This article has been corrected from its original form to add the day of the clinic, and clarify that vaccinations will be given to anyone aged 12 and older.