(Scott County, IA) -- In January, President Joe Biden announced plans to open 100 federally operated mass vaccination sites around the country and leaders in Scott County want one of the sites to be in the Quad Cities Area.
The Scott County Board of Supervisors plans to send a letter to the Iowa Dept. of Public Health asking the state to request the Federal Emergency Management Agency to select the QCA for a regional site. “FEMA comes with its own supplies and staff and they can augment the efforts of the local health systems and the public health departments. And provide yet another opportunity for people to get vaccinated,” Scott County Supervisor Ken Croken said.
According to FEMA, the agency in charge of the sites, 50 will be mega vaccination sites, capable of 6,000 doses a day, and 50 will be large vaccination sites, capable of 3,000 doses a day.
It’s still unclear where these sites will be located, but Croken is pushing for one in the Quad Cities. “Criteria they will use to select sites is not publicized and certainly not known to me. However, I do believe that raising your hand and offering a location will position us well among the many potential sites that will be out there."
One suggested location is Modern Woodmen Park. Croken, who is also part of the QC River Bandits ownership team, said the group is onboard with the idea and would offer the facilities at no cost to taxpayers. “The health and safety of our neighbors in the Quad Cities is of utmost importance to the Quad Cities River Bandits. So we’re happy to make the facility available and it’s uniquely well-suited to this kind of activity,” he said.
The Scott County board of supervisors is drafting the letter and will vote to send it to the state health department on Thursday. According to FEMA, the first federal vaccine sites will open around the country later this month.