Wisconsin is getting federal support for a mass COVID-19 vaccination site at the Wisconsin Center in Milwaukee, Gov. Tony Evers says.
FEMA will coordinate staffing support to administer the COVID-19 vaccine. Wisconsin has committed to providing at least 7,000 weekly vaccine doses from the state’s allocation for the site.
“We truly appreciate this much-needed support from our federal partners at FEMA that comes at a critical time when Wisconsin is receiving more vaccine and we need more vaccinators getting shots into arms,” said Evers. “This mass vaccination clinic can help with the larger population while allowing our partners at the city and county levels to focus on getting the vaccine to more vulnerable populations in harder to reach areas of their communities.”
The state also is running its own mass vaccination sites. The third state-run site is due to open in Racine next week. Other community-based vaccination clinics include Rock County, which opened in February, and La Crosse County, which opened last week.
Operations at the Wisconsin Center will transition to the federal government this week, continuing the work already being done at the state and local level to increase vaccine access in the Milwaukee area. FEMA Region 5 Administrator Kevin Sligh said the center is an important resource for expanding and expediting vaccine availability to communities that need it the most.
The mass vaccination clinic is a joint effort between the city of Milwaukee, Milwaukee County, the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, the state and FEMA Region 5.
“FEMA’s work here in Milwaukee is a valuable addition to our efforts,” said Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett. “The new people and resources help expand our capacity, and, importantly, allows us to redeploy local vaccinators to underserved and under-vaccinated areas of the city.”
