The Tompkins County Health Department (TCHD) and the Cayuga Health System (CHS) are holding a COVID-19 vaccination clinic with the Johnson & Johnson (J&J) vaccine April 29 at the Shops at Ithaca Mall.
The clinic is open to all individuals 18 years of age and older. Preregistered appointments will be held from 8 a.m. to noon, and walk-in appointments will be held 1–3 p.m. The Cornell Cooperative Extension is offering free rides to vaccination appointments.
The TCHD and CHS were previously distributing the J&J vaccine but paused distribution under the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) recommendations.
The CDC advised that the distribution be paused after receiving six reports of blood clots connected to the vaccine. The CDC recommended April 25 that the use of the vaccine be resumed after deciding that the benefits of the vaccine outweigh the risks.
Individuals who receive the J&J vaccine should seek emergency medical care if they experience severe or persistent headaches, blurred vision, shortness of breath, chest pain, leg swelling, persistent abdominal pain, or easy bruising or tiny blood spots under the skin beyond the injection site.
The J&J vaccine requires only one dose, and the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines require two. Individuals are considered to be fully vaccinated two weeks after receiving a J&J vaccination.
Ithaca College is planning to require all students to be fully vaccinated before returning to campus in Fall 2021 but will accept religious and medical exemptions.
Individuals who are unable to attend the April 29 vaccination clinic can sign up in the Tompkins County COVID-19 Registry to be notified when more appointments are available.
