November 12, 2021
Media contacts:
Deidre McCabe, Director, Office of Communications, 410-767-3536
Andy Owen, Deputy Director, Media Relations 410-767-6491
Maryland Department of Health and partners open new vaccine and testing site at State Center in Baltimore City
New Midtown location will offer free vaccination and testing services in one convenient location, continuing Maryland’s commitment to a barrier-free COVID-19 recovery
Baltimore, MD— The Maryland Department of Health (MDH) has announced the opening tomorrow of a new state-run COVID-19 vaccination and testing site at State Center in Baltimore City. The site will be called the State Center COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing Site and will be located at 300 W. Preston Street. It will be run jointly by MDH, the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS), and Johns Hopkins Medicine (JHM).
“Our commitment to providing accessible vaccination and testing services has never been stronger, and the important work we have done in this partnership continues uninterrupted at the new State Center site,” said MDH Secretary Dennis R. Schrader. “With vaccinations for all Marylanders five years old and older now available, this site will be an important part of keeping Baltimore City residents protected from COVID-19.”
“Continuing to move forward means continuing our partnership with UMMS, Baltimore City, and the State to provide the testing and vaccinations needed to create a safety net for our communities,” said Kevin W. Sowers, MSN, RN, FAAN, president of the Johns Hopkins Health System and executive vice president of Johns Hopkins Medicine. “Vaccination is safe, it’s effective, and it’s free.”
The State Center COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing Site will continue the vaccine and testing operations formerly housed at the Baltimore Convention Center (BCCFH). The joint team that will be operating the site is known as the BCCFH COVID Task Force.
“The success of the public-private partnership forged through the BCCFH has exceeded the expectations of all involved in this incredible project. The expert clinical services at the site, including COVID-19 testing and vaccination, have made an enormous difference in our collective response to the pandemic,” said Mohan Suntha, MD, MBA, President and Chief Executive Officer of the University of Maryland Medical System.
To mark the opening, on Saturday, Nov. 13, the new facility will offer Pfizer COVID-19 vaccinations for Marylanders ages five and up from 8 a.m. until 11:30 a.m. For individuals ages 5-11, vaccines will be available by appointment only, while supplies last. Visit umms.org/bccvaccine to make an appointment. Walk-up vaccines will be available to individuals 12 and older.
After tomorrow’s opening, the weekly schedule for free testing and vaccination services will be:
Vaccinations - Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays
Walk-up vaccines will be available to individuals ages 12 and older anytime during operating hours.
Pfizer vaccines for individuals ages 5-11 will be available by appointment only, as supplies last.
Visit umms.org/bccvaccine for the latest hours of operation or to schedule.
Testing - Mondays, Wednesdays, and Friday from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Monoclonal antibody treatment (mAb), which was previously offered at the Baltimore Convention Center location, moved in September to the UMMC Modular Care Unit on 110 South Paca Street. Services are available Monday through Friday, with appointment times from 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. The mAb service is available to all COVID-19-positive persons ages 12 and up who qualify to receive it as treatment and to those COVID-19-negative persons who qualify to receive it after exposure to COVID-19. Patients can be referred for treatment by their provider or they can self-refer. A patient’s provider may fill out the online referral found at umms.org/icreferral. For self-referral, patients may complete the form found at umms.org/bccinfusion or by calling (410) 649-6122 for assistance.
For questions about vaccinations, testing, or monoclonal antibody treatment, call (410) 649-6200.
For more information about COVID-19 in Maryland visit covidLINK.maryland.gov. For the most recent Maryland COVID-19 data, visit coronavirus.maryland.gov.
NOTE TO MEDIA: Executives from MDH, UMMS, and JHM will be available Tuesday, November 16, at 11 a.m. for interviews at the site and pictures outside of the clinic.
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The Maryland Department of Health is dedicated to protecting and improving the health and safety of all Marylanders through disease prevention, access to care, quality management and community engagement.
The BCCFH is the longest-running convention center COVID alternate care site (ACS) in the U.S. The field hospital cared for 1,945 inpatients from April 2020 until June 2021, the longest uninterrupted inpatient service of any comparable site, and evolved and broadened its scope to focus on additional COVID related public health efforts. Clinicians have conducted more than 116,000 COVID tests and administered more than 124,000 vaccinations at the site.
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