UAB COVID-19 Vaccine Site Opens In Center Point Friday

BIRMINGHAM, AL — UAB will open another Jefferson County community COVID-19 vaccination location Friday at AOH Cathedral of the Cross at 1480 Center Point Parkway.

Cathedral of the Cross will serve as a drive-through, appointment-only location that operates from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Jefferson County residents have expressed concern over availability of the vaccine within the county, and many have gone outside the county to receive shots.

"I’ve heard over and over about people leaving the county to go get a shot in some other place," Jefferson County Commissioner Joe Knight said in a release. "So this will serve the northeast section, but it also serves as far as Gardendale and other places that they don’t have to leave Jefferson County in order to get their vaccination.'

UAB has set up multiple vaccine locations in Jefferson County, but the appointments have been hard to come by. Sites at UAB Highlands, Margaret Cameron Spain Auditorium on the UAB campus, the Hoover Met and Parker High School have been in operation for weeks, and a news release from UAB said as of Monday its vaccine registry still has more than 55,000 people in line to receive shots.

Officials said the vaccine patient list is moving more quickly now, as UAB receives more doses from the state.

"We continue to work extremely closely with the Jefferson County Department of Public Health to identify areas in our community where vaccines are needed, and Center Point and the northeastern side of the county is where the data showed we needed to go next," said Dr. Sarah Nafziger, vice president of Clinical Support Services at UAB. "We have said all along that we believe these vaccines are the ticket out of this pandemic. We are getting there. It will take some more time, but we are getting there. And we are looking forward to getting started in Center Point later this week."

On March 22, in addition to those age 55 and older and people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, groups to be included for extended eligibility are people ages 16 to 64 with high-risk medical conditions, which include but are not limited to the following conditions:

• Cancer
• Chronic kidney disease
• COPD
• Heart conditions such as heart failure, coronary artery disease or cardiomyopathies; immunocompromised state
• Solid organ transplant
• Obesity, BMI greater than 30
• Pregnancy
• Sickle cell disease
• Smoking
• Type 1 and 2 diabetes
• Other medical conditions as determined by your medical provider

Also, critical workers in the following areas who were not recommended for vaccination in Phase 1b will be eligible:

• Transportation and logistics
• Waste and wastewater
• Food service (includes restaurant staff)
• Shelter and housing (construction)
• Finance (bank tellers)
• Information technology and communication
• Energy
• Legal
• Media
• Public safety (engineers)

More than 1.3 million doses of the vaccine have been administered in Alabama, and 836,948 people have received at least one dose.

Those currently eligible to be vaccinated as determined by the Alabama Department of Public Health can visit www.uabmedicinevaccine.org to register. Once a registration form is submitted, no further communication will come from UAB until there is an appointment time available; that communication will come from UAB’s scheduling software program called Phreesia to confirm appointment locations and times.