CUMMINGTON — COVID-19 vaccination clinics are going to be held at the Cummington Fair this weekend, put on by Hilltown Community Health Centers in partnership with the Northampton Health Department.
“It’s a place where there are a lot of people,” said Eliza Lake, executive director for Hilltown Community Health Centers.
The clinics will take place 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, and the Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines will all be available.
Lake said the clinics in small towns have typically drawn a dozen people, although she noted that a clinic in Chester got more than 30 people to get vaccinated.
“It’s one arm at a time,” she said.
Lake said most of the pop-up clinics that Hilltown Community Health Centers have put on have been in partnership with the Northampton Health Department, whom she praised.
“It’s been a fantastic collaboration,” she said.
She also noted that those who get vaccinated at a clinic put on by the Hilltown Community Health Centers can get gift certificates for local businesses such as the Chesterfield General Store & Cafe and the Old Creamery Co-op.
Lake said that in general the southern Hampden County hilltowns have vaccination rates below county and state rates, while in general the Hampshire County hilltowns have better numbers, but there are still communities with numbers worse than those in the state or their county. She also said that vaccination numbers everywhere are lower than what is needed to manage COVID-19, and that Hilltown Community Health Centers are committed to continue doing pop-up clinics and vaccination outreach.