BILLINGS — With COVID-19 vaccination appointments now available to all Yellowstone County residents above the age of 16, the clinic at MetraPark has not seen a large increase in appointments as of now.
“I want to see our numbers continue to fill up. I want to see us start getting in some of those 16- and 17-year olds,” says Jennifer Staton, the emergency preparedness manager for RiverStone Health.
April 1 was an important day because for the first time in Montana, those under the age of 60 who do not have medical conditions that put them at high risk for COVID-19 are able to get vaccinated. Gov. Greg Gianforte, who also got the vaccine Thursday, announced last month the state was expanding access to the vaccine.
According to the latest data from the Unified Health Command, roughly 17% of Yellowstone County residents are fully vaccinated and roughly 25% have received the initial dose.
Appointments for next week are currently open and can be found at mtreadyclinic.org.
Those under the age of 18 who are seeking a vaccine appointment must have a vaccination consent form signed by a parent. Those can be found at https://covid.riverstonehealth.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/COVID-19-vax-consent-form-3-24-21.pdf [covid.riverstonehealth.org]
