LOCAL

Franklin County to open COVID-19 vaccination clinic at Chambersburg Mall

Amber South
Chambersburg Public Opinion

A mass COVID-19 vaccination site will open this spring at Chambersburg Mall. 

The Franklin County community clinic is expected to open in mid-April at the former Burlington store at the mall on Black Gap Road in Greene Township, according to a press release from the Franklin County Commissioners. 

The commissioners will open the clinic in collaboration with WellSpan Health. 

“We continue to be focused on doing whatever we can in the fight against COVID-19. This vaccination clinic is the result of a great partnership between the County, WellSpan, and the Chambersburg Mall that will benefit Franklin County residents,” said Commissioner Chairman Dave Keller in the release. 

Transportation and parking availability were key factors in choosing a site, said Commissioner John Flannery. 

Rabbittransit will provide free rides to and from the vaccination clinic to anyone who needs one, according to the release. To schedule a ride, call 1-800-632-9063.

"This clinic will provide increased access to vaccines for all Franklin County residents," stated Commissioner Bob Ziobrowski.

Appointments have been limited

WellSpan Health and the county's other medical system, Keystone Health, provide information on their websites about registering for appointments and vaccine availability. Vaccination appointments are only available if sufficient doses are in hand. 

To learn about appointments with WellSpan Health, go to www.wellspan.org/covid19/covid-19-vaccine/, or call the WellSpan COVID-19 Hotline at 1-855-851-3641.

For Keystone, go to keystonehealth.org/covid19vaccine/.

Local pharmacies have also been receiving shipments of the Moderna vaccine. They typically provide updates about appointment availability on their Facebook pages. 

Who can get a COVID-19 vaccine? 

Pennsylvania is still in the 1A phase, which includes: 

  • Healthcare personnel, EMS first responders, critical workers maintaining core functions and long-term care facility residents;
  • people ages 65 and older;
  • and people ages 16-64 with certain medical conditions, as defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that increase the risk of severe illness from the virus.

President Joe Biden said this week that he wants states to make all adults eligible to receive the vaccine by May 1. 

More:COVID-19 cases, deaths & hospitalizations are back around pre-spike levels in Franklin County

How many people have been vaccinated? 

As of March 11, 12,080 Franklin County residents have received both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine and 8,900 have received the first dose, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health. 

Across Pennsylvania, just over 1.065 million people have been fully vaccinated and just under 2.18 million have received one dose. 

COVID-19 situation has been improving

A downward trend in the number of COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations and deaths attributed to the virus continues. 

Franklin County is in the "moderate" transmission category. The most recent entries on the Pennsylvania Department of Health's Early Warning System dashboard show that just over 80 out of 100,000 were infected with the virus and about 5.5% of tests came back positive between Feb. 19 and March 4. 

The rolling average of daily hospitalizations has been steadily dropping, going from a high of 112 on Dec. 22 to just over 21 as of March 11, according to the health department. 

Most days still have at least one death of a person with COVID-19, but the rate has decreased significantly since the early and mid-winter.