2 Mass Coronavirus Vaccination Sites To Open In Rhode Island

PROVIDENCE, RI — Two mass coronavirus vaccination sites will open to the Rhode Island in the coming week, the Department of Health announced Thursday. Once operational, the sites will vaccinate hundreds of Rhode Islanders per day.

"The big goal of these sites is volume," said Dr. Nicole Alexander-Scott, the department's director.

So far, the state's vaccination effort has been very targeted, focusing on frontline health care workers and elderly nursing home residents. While it may seem like the system is moving slowly, it has allowed the state to have very little vaccine waste.

"We are already starting to see results," Alexander-Scott said, adding that there has been a "precipitous drop" in coronavirus cases amid health care workers and since the beginning of the vaccination effort. "Who you vaccinate matters."

Seniors 75 years and older are now eligible to get vaccinated. The Department of Health is taking a three-pronged approach to vaccinating the general public: community sites, pharmacies and state-run sites. The state run sites, which will open starting next week, will have the capacity to vaccinate hundreds of people per day.

The first site is located on Sockonosset Cross Road in Cranston, in the same building as one of the coronavirus field hospitals. This site has been operational for a while, serving member of the Rhode Island National Guard and some civilian health care workers. Starting next week, appointments will be available for seniors.

The second site will be at the Dunkin' Donuts Center in Providence, which operated as an asymptomatic test site until last week. In the coming days, certain health care workers will be vaccinated, ahead of the official opening next Thursday. Appointments will be open to schedule, up to two weeks out, starting Wednesday.

The department will launch an online-based portal system to schedule appointments for these state-run sites. A phone number will also be available for those who do not have internet access.

Once operational, the Providence site is projected to vaccinate 900 people per day, while Cranston is expected to vaccinate 500 people per day. These numbers are expected to increase as more doses become available from the federal government.

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