Health

COVID-19 vaccination site at Reggie Lewis Center open despite early week winter storm

ROXBURY, Mass. — The nor’easter delayed it by a day, but the Reggie Lewis Center in Roxbury is now open for mass vaccinations. The city wanted a location to help get the vaccine into some of the state’s hardest-hit communities.

Jean-Luc Mathurin has cancer and his age makes him eligible for the vaccines.

“If I get sick, I may not make it,” Mathurin said.

The Dorchester man came to the Reggie Lewis site to get his first dose of the Pfizer vaccine.

“It is very easy to get to because I am familiar with the area,” Mathurin said.

Related: Massachusetts’ vaccination program ramps up after storm

The 220 appointments that were canceled on Monday because of the storm will be re-booked for next Monday. Boston Health & Human Service Chief Marty Martinez said the Reggie Lewis location is critical to getting the vaccine into communities of color.

“Sort of a complicated puzzle to make sure there are accessible sites, locations in neighborhoods and communities especially those hardest hit,” Martinez said.

The Reggie Lewis site was picked because it is right on the bus line and the MBTA’s orange line.

“We wanted it to be accessible, we wanted it to be a site that people knew in the community,” Martinez said.

>>>MORE: Snowstorm can’t stop COVID-19 vaccination effort

The city also wanted a site that could grow. Out of the gate about 220 people per day will get their shots. The state plans to take it over later in the month and increase that number to 3,000 shots each day.

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