Odessa City Council Considering Opening Mass Vaccination Clinic at UTPB

The vaccine clinic will not be huge like the Ratliff Stadium mass vaccination clinic but it will still offer up to 10,000 shots if approved by Odessa City Council.

According to NewsWest 9, people are now trying to get the vaccine since cases in Odessa have started spiking, so the incident command team is looking to get 6,000-10,000 shots of Pfizer and Moderna vaccines.

"They are overwhelmed taking care of the COVID patients that are critically sick. So not only that, there are clinics that are getting overwhelmed with testing and vaccinations so we are trying to do our part in the community with the city of Odessa, Ector County Health Department, and UTPB to help the hospitals with the vaccinations," said Rodd Huber, OFR Assistant Fire Chief over EMS.

With the Delta variant continuing to infect people in the area and hospitals strained to their breaking point, more people are now seeking the vaccine.

"Since this Delta variant has gotten so deadly and so many of our family and friends are hospitalized or have passed away, they’ve ran out of vaccinations. So we have seen a big increase in people that really didn’t want the vaccination the first time, and they’re getting at this time," said Huber.

If approved by Odessa City Council, the mass vaccination clinic at UTPB would begin giving shots on September 21, 2021.

The clinic would be open to everyone whether they need their first shots or they are looking to get a booster shot.

"It’s going to be first come first serve. We’re not gonna turn anybody away. Now if you’re telling us that it is that additional shot, we do need a doctor's note to do that at this time," said Huber.

If needed, another mass clinic could be on the horizon if this one is successful.

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