The Berks County Commissioners have announced that the Berks Cares Vaccine Center will be opening on Monday, May 3 to start administering COVID-19 vaccines.
The center, which is located in North Reading Plaza, 5370 Allentown Pike in Muhlenberg Township, will be open from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. during its first week of operations.
Vaccinations will be given by appointment only. Residents will be able to sign up for appointments for the week of May 3-7, 2021 at doyourpartberks.com/vaccinecenter starting Tuesday, April 27. Appointment blocks for the following week will be added on Tuesdays moving forward.
The Berks Cares Vaccine Center is a public health collaborative with the Berks Community Health Center and other community partners to set up a community vaccination center to make sure all Berks County residents can access the COVID-19 vaccine.
The Berks Community Health Center is providing the vaccine supply and will manage the staff at the site. Other community partners include Co-County Wellness Services, BARTA, Berks County Public Libraries, Berks County Area Agency on Aging, Berks County Department of Emergency Services and the County of Berks.
COVID-19 vaccine appointments can also be scheduled through the Berks Cares Vaccine Call Center, 1-888-712-2772, Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
County officials say that as of 4 p.m. Tuesday, the Call Center alone had helped 58 residents sign up for appointments at the Berks Cares Vaccine Center.
The Call Center, which is managed by Co-County Wellness Services, is staffed to assist callers in English and Spanish and has access to a translation line for other languages.
The Call Center can also assist residents in need of free transportation to vaccine appointments with fixed and shared ride service through BARTA. BARTA’s regular bus routes #1 and #3, which go to North Reading Plaza, will also be free to all riders starting Monday, May 3.