PA National Guard members vaccinating patients at Lancaster County Community Vaccination Center
Don t be surprised if you see a man or woman in uniform. PA National Guard members may be the person administering your COVID-19 vaccine or greeting you at the door. Author: Grace Griffaton (FOX43), Keith Schweigert (FOX43) Published: 6:01 PM EDT April 12, 2021 Updated: 5:24 PM EDT April 13, 2021
LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. Many of the members have been involved since the very beginning of the pandemic, said Sergeant First Class Joel Bergey.
Bergey explains how the PA National Guard has helped throughout the pandemic. From setting up overflow hospitals to assisting with COVID-19 testing: They have had boots on the ground since the start.
THE ISSUE
In the Sunday LNP | LancasterOnline âWatchdogâ column, reporter Carter Walker wrote about a Lancaster County constableâs private business, started at the beginning of the pandemic, which âhas won most, if not all, of the lucrative no-bid contracts to provide security to facilities related to COVID-19, paid for with public funds.â Lancaster Countyâs 55 constables â elected officials who often serve low-level warrants and transport prisoners for the district courts â are paid per job, Walker reported.
And we can appreciate the initiative of Michael Chance, a constable from Strasburg, who says he launched his company, Constable Peace Keeping Detail LLC, to help fellow constables who were without regular work during the pandemic.
How to buy a house in seller’s market; what to watch for after J&J shot; more: Good Morning, Pennsylvania PennLive.com 3 hrs ago
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Fifty members of the Pennsylvania National Guard â 15 from Lancaster County â reported for duty at the countyâs mass vaccination site Tuesday.
The Vaccinate Lancaster Coalition announced the move the same day Gov. Tom Wolf announced the state is expanding eligibility to all residents age 16 and older.
âI think itâs very important,â Sgt. 1st Class Joel Bergey, of Philadelphia, said of the mission. âMy team brings the ability to help increase the number of vaccinations to 1,500 to 1,800 a day.â
The Lancaster County Community Vaccination Center is set up to provide 6,000 vaccinations a day, a number officials expect to hit Saturday. Last week, the site at the former Bon-Ton store at Park City Center averaged roughly 5,000 appointments a day.
Now that Pennsylvanians 16 and older have universal access to COVID-19 vaccines, LNP | LancasterOnline gathered answers about what it means for scheduling and appointments at Lancaster Countyâs largest vaccination sites.
Dr. Michael Ripchinski, chief clinical officer with Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health and director of the Lancaster County Community Vaccination Center at the former Bon-Ton store at Park City Center, answered questions about the countyâs mass vaccination site.
Hospitals were contacted to provide answers to the last question.
Will opening up eligibility translate into an influx of now-eligible patients?
âWe do not expect the accelerated opening of Phase 2 to appreciably impact our operations, as weâve already been scheduling Phase 2 for appointments beginning next week,â Ripchinski said in an email to LNP | LancasterOnline.