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The University of Alabama at Birmingham will offer free Pfizer COVID-19 vaccinations for new and returning students from 3-7 p.m. Tuesday, May 18, and Tuesday, June 8.
The vaccinations will be administered inside Bartow Arena, 617 13th St. South. No one will be turned away as long as they meet the vaccine age eligibility requirement.
The Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine requires two separate shots separated by 21 days. Participants will be able to receive their first or second Pfizer vaccine on either Tuesday, May 18, or Tuesday, June 8. However, anyone who receives their first shot on June 8 will need to follow up at another location for the second shot.
Parking with no ticketing will be available in zones B, D and E around Bartow Arena. Grab-and-go food and UAB swag will be offered, and students who get vaccinated will have a chance to win a $250 Amazon gift card.
Students who receive the COVID-19 vaccination off-campus are asked to add their immunization information in the UAB Student Health and Wellness patient portal. More information on that process is available online, or email studenthealth@uab.edu.
Getting a vaccine is much more likely to protect one’s health than masking or social distancing, says Suzanne Judd, Ph.D., professor in the UAB School of Public Health.
People are considered fully vaccinated two weeks after they received their second shot of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, or the single dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a fully vaccinated person is 94 percent less likely to be hospitalized compared to an unvaccinated individual, if exposed to the coronavirus or a mutation of it. Anyone who has had COVID-19 is urged to get the vaccine 90 days after infection.
UAB experts say fully vaccinated people can:
- Reconnect with loved ones, friends and co-workers
- Attend small events in person
- Travel without quarantining, both domestically and internationally
- Gather and share meals with family again
- Access full CDC recommendations for “When You’ve Been Fully Vaccinated” at cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/fully-vaccinated.html#vaccinated.
To learn more about COVID-19 on UAB's campus, visit UAB United.