Mega Doctor News
Laredo, Texas – On Thursday, November 4, 2021, the City of Laredo Health Department hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony to present the new Mobile Health Clinic. This health clinic on wheels will allow the Health Department to mobilize their services, making them accessible and available to everyone in our community, emphasizing the prevention, promotion, and protection against COVID-19. It was with great pleasure that the Health Department Director, Dr. Richard Chamberlain, presented the Mobile Health Clinic to the community, a project that will provide COVID-related attention throughout various city locations.
The acquisition of this unit was funded by an exclusive allocation of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds to be used to prevent, prepare for, and respond to the coronavirus (COVID-19). This allocation was authorized by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), Public Law 116-136. The total amount of the grant was over $2.2 million dollars. The Health Department received $1.05 million dollars overall. The total investment for this unit added up to $213,681.
The Mobile Health clinic will provide vaccination services, such as first dose, second dose, and boosters of the COVID-19 vaccine. Mobile Health will start to partner, plan, and implement vaccination clinics with other agencies, including community-based organizations and businesses, the local college and university, religious institutions, community health centers, pharmacies, long-term care facilities, independent living facilities, assisted living centers, nursing homes, first responder organizations, non-traditional providers, local areas with high-risk and underserved populations, and various community events. This will ensure health equity providing access to vaccination to all populations, including our most vulnerable. Mobile Health will also be used for COVID-19 testing. Moreover, the project will serve the community by providing health assessments and screenings.
“The ability to go out and be where we need to be is one big portion and the main focus of the department, accessibility to health services is what we do. A lot of people are able to drive or somehow get to the places they need to get their health services but there are still a lot of members of our community that do not have that luxury. By having this mobile system, by going out there and reaching the people that need it the most, we are doing exactly what we need to do: take care of our community, the vulnerable population, by offering basic services,” said Laredo’s City Manager, Robert Eads.
Mobile Health is the gateway for preventative services, health education, primary care, and on-the-go clinical services. If the community cannot reach a health facility for any of these services, thanks to Mobile Health, health services can reach them.
