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Vaccinations now available in more locations in Wake County

Getting a coronavirus vaccine shot closer to home is getting a bit easier in Wake County.

Posted Updated

By
Joe Fisher
, WRAL reporter
RALEIGH, N.C. — Getting a coronavirus vaccine shot closer to home is getting a bit easier in Wake County.

The county health department on Friday transferred 4,200 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine to 29 pharmacies and physician offices in all corners of Wake County. Previously, all vaccinations in the county have been done in Raleigh, but the transfers now mean they can be done in seven nearby towns as well: Apex, Cary, Fuquay-Varina, Garner, Holly Springs, Wake Forest and Zebulon.

DJ’s Pharmacy in Cary got 270 vaccine doses on Friday, and manager Heather Lee said she expects they all will be gone by next week.

"We have done a couple of our customers. One that was 95 years old, we actually did her curbside in front of our store because she couldn’t walk inside," Lee said. “We want to broaden the vaccinations so we don’t have to be under all these restrictions all the time."

DJ's is one of the 30 providers in Wake County benefiting from the arrival of the Johnson & Johnson one-dose shot. Wake County has about 150 providers approved to give shots, but limited supply has prevented all but about two dozen from getting any vaccine until now.

Jason Wittes, the county's pharmacy director, said trusted providers in the community can help people overcome hesitancy about the vaccine and eliminate barriers like a lack of transportation. Wake County plans to expand the program with pharmacies and physician offices as more vaccine becomes available, he said.

The single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine is easily stored in a refrigerator, Wittes said, which helps get vaccine to all corners of the county.

"People don't have to worry about coming back for a second dose, and it's at regular refrigerated temperatures, so it's much easier to maintain," he said. "If you are in Zebulon and don’t have transportation and you have the local drug store that you want to go and get vaccinated at, you now have that ability through this transfer program."

Hayes Barton Pharmacy in Raleigh's Five Points neighborhood has vaccinated some customers on site, but the staff took most of the doses allocated to the pharmacy to neighborhood clinics. There, they have given 600 shots in the last week at churches, schools and retirement homes.

"We’ve had people break down and cry over it because they are so relieved to get it," pharmacy manager Brent Talley said. "I’ve never seen anybody more relieved to get a vaccine ever.”

About 500 people remain on the vaccine waiting list at Hayes Barton Pharmacy, Talley said.

"A lot of people have a hard time getting to other places and getting in at other places," he said.

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