KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A mass COVID-19 vaccination site will open soon in Springfield as vaccine mandates and boosters send the number of people seeking a shot soaring.
“I think we’ve seen more than 100-percent increase in the last week in terms of overall demand for vaccine,” Jon Mooney, assistant director of the Springfield-Greene County Health Department, said Tuesday in announcing the site.
He anticipates that 500 people a day will be vaccinated a day at the site after it opens Monday in a space that once housed a Gordmans and Toys “R” Us store.
It’s not just that more people must get the vaccine to keep their jobs or that boosters are now available for a group that includes frontline medical workers and those with immune system issues.
Part of the demand also is expected to come from parents. Pfizer has submitted research to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on the effectiveness of its COVID-19 vaccine in 5- to 11-year-olds but it hasn’t yet been approved.
Meanwhile, in Kansas City, health officials recommended that Kansas City extend its mask mandate for at least a little bit longer. The City Council will make a decision Thursday.
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