Top White House officials are making a stop in Raleigh Tuesday afternoon as part of month-long “vaccine sprint” across the South, highlighting the ease of getting vaccinated and energizing grassroots vaccine outreach efforts.

At 3:30 p.m. today, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan and White House Policy Advisor for COVID-19 Equity Dr. Cameron Webb are expected to arrive with the National Month of Action tour bus at the WakeMed Medical Park, 23 Sunnybrook Road, right across from the vaccine clinic at the Wake County Public Health Center.

Numerous community, nonprofit and health organizations are meeting in this parking lot to do on-the-ground canvassing at the adjacent apartment complex. Using Census tract data to identify low vaccination areas in Wake County, these groups have been partnering to conduct vaccine outreach in some of the county’s most vulnerable neighborhoods.

During their brief stop, Regan and Webb will join local leaders to thank and embolden these organizations and canvassers to continue this time-consuming, yet effective, one-on-one messaging about vaccines. Wake County currently has 69.7% of adults vaccinated with at least one dose.

“The work our community partners are doing to help us get Wake County vaccinated is some of the most important work that anyone can do right now,” said Wake County Board of Commissioners Chairman Matt Calabria. “Every week, we have people going out on foot making personal connections with their neighbors, having conversations and sharing information that might help someone make that critical decision to protect themselves with a shot.”

Just blocks from the canvassing event, free vaccinations will be going on at the Wake County Public Health Center until 7:30 p.m. and down the street at Southeastern Healthcare of NC until 7 p.m. today.

Community partners include:

• El Centro Hispano, a contracted partner of Wake County Public Health, works with a cadre of Community Health Workers and volunteers to provide outreach, testing and vaccination at community pop-up sites, and support services to the Hispanic & Latinx populations, which have been disproportionately affected by COVID-19
   
• Southeastern Healthcare of NC, a minority-owned and historically underutilized business, serves as a vaccine provider and NCDHHS partner providing Community Health Workers for COVID-19 canvassing. They offer walk-in vaccines Monday through Friday 3 to 7 p.m., pop-up clinics and homebound vaccinations.
   
• The NC Counts Coalition provides high-impact grants attached to measurable outcomes, technical assistance and one-on-one coaching to local organizations, primarily led by people of color, equipped to be trusted messengers to their communities for COVID-19 vaccines.
   
• Resilience Corps NC AmeriCorps Ambassadors, under the Conservation Trust for North Carolina, embedded with Wake County Public Health to conduct COVID-19 education and vaccine outreach in the community.
   
• The NC Cooperative Extension – Wake County Center has provided leadership for the AmeriCorps and AmeriCorps VISTA teams working in Wake County with COVID-19 outreach, vaccination and food security work. They’ve helped to coordinate and serve millions meals to students and connect with businesses across Wake County to provide advice and information on vaccines.
   
• WakeMed Health and Hospitals offers vaccine clinics four days a week right across the street, has hosted vaccination outreach events in African American churches and partnered with Wake County to vaccinate the homeless.
   

Media should park in the empty bank parking lot right next to the event site. Administrator Regan, Dr. Webb and leaders and volunteers from the various partners will be available around 3:50 p.m. for interviews. Canvassers will head into the neighborhood after 4 p.m.

Free COVID-19 vaccines are available to anyone 12 and older at more than 200 providers in Wake County by appointment or walk-in. The process to check-in and get your shot usually takes about 10 minutes, not including the 15-minute observation period after the shot. No ID is required. Anyone can check out the free clinic schedule at WakeGov.com/vaccine, by calling the vaccine hotline at 888-675-4567 or by clicking on the Vaccine Finder.