County Executive Marc Elrich and County Council Applaud Announcement of Mass Vaccination Site Coming to Montgomery County
We would like to thank Governor Larry Hogan and the State of Maryland for their partnership over the last few weeks as we worked to open a mass vaccination site at the Germantown campus of Montgomery College.
With thousands of Montgomery County residents leaving the County and driving to other jurisdictions to get vaccinated, we are pleased to have a site that will provide better access for our residents and other Marylanders. We would also like to thank our partner Holy Cross Health for the time and expertise that they have put into planning for this new mass vaccination site. They have been pivotal to the process, and we look forward to continuing to work with them. We also are grateful for Montgomery College’s willingness to continually step up to serve our community.
In addition, we would like to thank our State and federal delegations for their support and advocacy throughout this process. They understand how important this site is to the County and the State and they helped us amplify our message. Montgomery County is fortunate to have such engaged and influential legislators at both the State and federal levels. Their voices continue to make a difference.
As Maryland’s largest and most diverse community by race, socio-economic status, and culture, we have been and will continue to make sure that our vaccination efforts are equitable throughout the County. We encourage all residents to get vaccinated as soon as they are eligible.
Our priority has always been the health and safety of our residents as well as others in the region, which now includes having greater access to the COVID-19 vaccine. This mass vaccination site will be more accessible by public transit than other locations around the State, making it easier for people who depend on public transportation to get to the site.
With the anticipated increase in the volume of vaccine that the State will receive from the federal government in the coming weeks, this new site will enhance and expand our efforts to get more shots in the arms of Montgomery County residents, while also focusing on our most vulnerable residents and hardest hit communities. Vaccinations, masking up and testing are our best defenses against the virus. This mass vaccination site is a significant step forward, but we can’t stop doing the things that have kept us safe for the last year.
Featured photo courtesy of @DronifyDMV
Adam Lederer and Nicholas Fettig met when they were students in the Digital Design & Development magnet program at Argyle Middle School. Now, they’ve created MoCoVax.com – a website committed to notifying citizens of Montgomery County when and where Vaccines are available. Adam is now a junior at Clarksburg High School and Nicholas is a junior at Wheaton High School.
We spoke to them last night and asked about the reason they decided to create this website. Adam told us there are similar sites, but none are specific to Montgomery County and none of them work as fast as their site does, which virtually contains a live update for several vaccination sites in the county, including Walgreens, CVS, and Adventist Health Care.
“We hope to make the difficult process of filing for an appointment a bit easier, especially for those who need it the most.” Nicholas said. The website has only been up for a couple days, but has been gaining popularity as eligible residents search for elusive vaccine appointments. Though the website alerts you when appointments are available, you would still have to go through the sign up process on the website of those providing the vaccine.
One commenter wrote in a Facebook post touting the website that MoCoVax.com “helped my ex-husband (who has ALS) find an appointment in this Hunger Games process. It’s a huge service they’re doing for folks, life saving really.”
We thank these young men for providing this service to our county’s residents!
