St. Bernards Opens Community-Wide Registration for Free COVID-19 Vaccine to Persons 65 and Older

St. Bernards Healthcare announced Tuesday it has begun making appointments to any community member aged 65 years or older who wishes to receive the COVID-19 vaccine at no charge. 

The healthcare system will receive vaccine requests through a new, online registration process and a dedicated call center, and eligible applicants must reside within St. Bernards’ service area in northeast Arkansas.

Regional residents may volunteer for a vaccine appointment by visiting https://www.stbernards.info/covid-vaccine and completing the online, HIPAA-compliant form. In addition, persons without internet access may call (870) 351-7171 for help completing it.

St. Bernards Medical Center Administrator Michael Givens said St. Bernards wanted to create a seamless process for this specific age group to receive the vaccine.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted older populations particularly hard, and we believe we must do whatever we can to help, whether a person has a patient history with us or not,” Givens said. “While we still have limited available doses, we encourage any northeast Arkansas resident aged 65 or older to contact us for an appointment.”

St. Bernards will administer the vaccines at St. Bernards Auditorium, located at 505 East Washington Avenue in Jonesboro, at no charge to all recipients. Due to limited doses, however, individuals must make appointments in advance.

St. Bernards currently offers new registrants the COVID-19 vaccine manufactured by Moderna, which received Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on December 18, 2020. Individuals who receive an initial dose also receive an appointment for a second dose, scheduled for 28 days later. Should St. Bernards administer vaccines from another manufacturer, it will make appointments for follow-up doses based on recommendations from the FDA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).