Hundreds show for mass COVID-19 vaccination clinic held at Whiteville Parks and Rec Center

WHITEVILLE, NC (WWAY) —People traveled from as far as Raleigh, to get their first dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at a mass vaccination clinic in Whiteville on Thursday.

StarMed Healthcare has been contracted to help distribute COVID-19 vaccines in multiple counties across the state.

800 COVID-19 vaccines were distributed by StarMed Healthcare to people falling under groups 1, 2,3, and 4 on Thursday at the Whiteville Parks and Rec Center.

Initially, they were struggling to fill appointments for the vaccine clinic being held in Whiteville, posing a threat to their future vaccination clinics.

“If the vaccines are not filled up, if the slots are not filled up, there’s always a concern that next week the state will not send you more. So, we always want to make sure that we use up everything that we have. You don’t have to live in a specific county in order to receive it, but obviously we come to Columbus County so we can help the community,” said Dr. Arin Piramzadian, Chief Medical Officer at StarMed Healthcare.

“We had people who didn’t want it, and so they’re starting to come around and get the vaccine,” said Hal Lowder, Whiteville Emergency Service Director. “So, I think people are starting to believe in the science, and just wanted to see what would happen first, but we are seeing a lot more Columbus county people, and that was one of things we wanted to see more vaccines given in Columbus county.”

StarMed Healthcare hopes to hold weekly vaccination clinics, as they continue to see a growing positive response from community members.

“Right now obviously we’re open phases one through four, but the local health department has said that if you have an arm, we’re going to get the doses in you, we’re not going to waste a single dose,” said Dr. Piramzadian.

This week, StarMed Healthcare will have distributed a total of 1,300 COVID-19 vaccines in Columbus County from the vaccine clinic conducted today in Whiteville, and the vaccination clinic they plan to hold in tabor city on Saturday, March 20.