Tarrant County asks businesses, organizations to apply for pop-up COVID vaccine clinics

Jack Howland
·2 min read

With dwindling demand for large-scale COVID vaccination sites in Tarrant County, officials are turning their attention to pop-up clinics that revolve around organizations and events.

The county has partnered with the University of North Texas Health Science Center to launch a website where businesses or nonprofits can sign up for a pop-up clinic, according to a news release from the college. Those interested are asked to fill out a form with information such as photos of the proposed site, the location’s accessibility features and estimated attendance and capacity, the release says. If the group and location are approved, UNTHSC will set up a clinic for free.

Data suggests larger sites, such as the Texas Motor Speedway, are no longer as effective as they were at the beginning of the vaccine rollout, UNTHSC Chief Strategy Officer Dr. Sylvia Trent-Adams said in the release.

“This next phase of vaccinations will require more one-on-one interactions and more mobile sites that operate for shorter times at locations and events where people live and work,” Trent-Adams said. “It is essential to partner with businesses and organizations to make that happen.”

UNTHSC will work with OptumServe, a veteran-led healthcare service, to open and operate the clinics, according to the release. The group is also using its mobile clinic — inside of a large green and blue bus — to deliver the vaccine to neighborhoods with low vaccination rates, the release states.

People can request the mobile clinic by filling out a form from Tarrant County Public Health, according to the release.

Tarrant County is continuing to work with UNTHSC “to respond to the evolving challenges brought on by this pandemic,” Judge Glen Whitley said in the release.

“Now that demand for the vaccine has dropped, these smaller mobile units will make vaccinations more accessible and convenient for our community,” Whitley said. “I want to see Tarrant County lead the way in rising vaccination rates and I hope our residents will join us in this effort to bring mobile clinics out to their events and sites.”