Eastern PA's First COVID-19 Mass Vaccination Site Opens

LEHIGH COUNTY, PA — The first mass COVID-19 vaccination clinic in the region opened up on Wednesday in Lehigh County, even as doses of the vaccine remain in extremely short supply across the state and country.

The one-day drive-thru site, located at Dorney Park and Wildwater Kingdom in Allentown, will administer doses only to healthcare workers, first responders and those over 75. A schedule for future dates will be published as more doses of the vaccine are received.

"We will open the park again and do other shots when the vaccine becomes available," Brian Downs, a spokesperson for Lehigh Valley Health Network, told Patch in an email.

Patients who received a vaccine Wednesday will return in a month to receive the second dose.

Lehigh Valley Health Network made the decision not to make appointments available for the full expanded 1A category, which includes millions of Pennsylvanians over the age of 65.

"Based on our current supply, we are administering it to those who need it the most," Dr. Brian Nester, the CEO of Lehigh Valley Network, explained in a video message last week, noting that they would expand the offering as soon as they had more doses. "Trust that we know you're out there waiting. We will message you very soon to let you know when you can begin scheduling your vaccination."

RELATED: PA Officials Give COVID Vaccine Update, Addressing Supply Issues

In addition to the Dorney Park site, the health network plans to open additional mass vaccination clinics in Northampton and Monroe counties, as well as "large-scale drive-through COVID-19 vaccine events throughout the region" as supplies become available. Once they have the needed doses in hand, officials hope to eventually be able to vaccinate 5,000 people per day at sites.

The network touted their "extensive" experience in mass vaccine administration, noting that they've run similar clinics for flu vaccinations that have given as many as 8,000 doses a day.

But with supplies short, that number will be much smaller — closer to 1,000 — on Wednesday and in the opening weeks of administration.

Preregistration for appointments are available on the Lehigh Valley Health Network's website. Those who do not yet qualify to receive a vaccine are encouraged to register and get in line. The vaccine is free.

Elsewhere around the state, counties, pharmacies and other hospitals are administering vaccines. Once they receive sufficient supply, the state is planning to assist in the rollout. On Tuesday, PEMA director Randy Padfield said administration sites and methods will look different depending on the part of the state in question, and its specific needs.

"No one approach is applicable throughout the entire state," he said, noting that administration would be "federally supported, state-managed, and locally executed."

"This is undoubtedly the largest and most complex vaccination program ever initiated in the state, the nation, and the world," Padfield added.

On Tuesday, the state said that they went along with a Trump administration recommendation to expand the 1A category because they thought it meant more doses would be available to accommodate the larger group.

Instead, it soon became apparent that there was a national vaccine shortage, and some 4 million Pennsylvanians are now in the 1A category, in need of 8 million doses to get the required two shots. Currently, the state has only about 1.5 million doses.

The COVID-19 vaccine requires two doses to be administered; officials were adamant that once a person receives their first shot, the second will be available.