MIAMI – As the COVID-19 concerns intensify and younger patients find themselves sick, some of the Miami area’s famed nightclubs will be serving up shots and — well — shots.
Mobile COVID-19 vaccination units from CDR Health will be positioned outside LIV at the Fontainebleau in Miami Beach this Saturday and Sunday from 12:30 a.m. to 3 a.m.
They’ll be back out at LIV and also at Story the following weekend.
“We want to stay open and we know the only way for that to happen is that people get vaccinated,” said David Grutman, who owns the clubs.
Pfizer vaccines will be offered at those popups, with CDR Health planning to follow up with people for second doses three weeks later.
“It is absolutely a partnership born out of necessity, and I am grateful for it,” Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber said.
Hospital officials say the Delta variant is impacting younger and mostly unvaccinated community members. And Florida has seen a consistent upward trend in new infections over the past seven weeks.
“This is a community fight in a way we have never seen before,” said Tina Vidal-Duart, CEO of CDR Health.
During the daylight hours, long lines have been seen this week at COVID-19 testing sites. And some residents are now deciding to get the readily available vaccines.
Christian Escalona, 17, got his first shot at Tropical Park in Southwest Miami-Dade on Friday morning.
“Well, I see everybody around getting infected, so might as well put the vaccine in,” he said.
Local leaders, still hamstrung by the state on enacting some case mitigation efforts, are getting creative to fight the summer surge.
City of Miami employees now need to wear a mask at work unless they prove they are vaccinated.
In two weeks, Miami-Dade County employees will be required to get a weekly COVID-19 test unless they show proof of vaccination.