Double The Doses Given At Minneapolis Convention Center To Make Up For Severe Weather Delay
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- It was an especially busy day at the Minneapolis Convention Center on Saturday. The state acted fast and rescheduled thousands of COVID vaccine appointments to make up for lost time after severe weather in another part of the country delayed shipments of some Moderna doses.
"Most of the vaccines that were due to come to Minnesota were held up in either Texas or Tennessee [last week]," said Anne O'Connor with the state's emergency response team.
To play catch-up, the state doubled appointments on Saturday at the convention center from 3,000 to 6,000 and hired more nurses.
"Seventy vaccinators today, vaccinating continuously," said O'Connor.
Reggie Gandy, a teacher for Minneapolis Public Schools, is one of those patients who was rescheduled this week to get his first dose. He thought this rescheduling would be a mess to fix, but was pleasantly surprised that he only had to wait a week.
"I definitely didn't expect it to be that soon, so that was definitely another relief," said Gandy. "I also appreciated that they reached out to me to schedule a time instead of having to start the whole process over again."
Whether you're getting a COVID test or a vaccine, they want everyone to park in the same lot on 3rd Avenue and the parking lots are free. Once you cross the street, you'll see marked signs that point to which entrance you're looking for. Both entrances are on the same side of the convention center.
State officials say they expect to eventually give out 6,000 doses a day at the MCC regularly later this spring when more doses are available.