A walk-in COVID-19 vaccination clinic providing doses of the Pfizer vaccine is underway at the Muswellbrook Indoor Sports Centre thanks to a collaborative effort between BHP and the Muswellbrook Shire Council.
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The clinic will operate from 9am to 7pm and is available for all residents aged 12 years and over.
First and second doses of the Pfizer vaccine will be available (a three week interval is required between doses) and people wanting to attend the clinic are advised to bring their Medicare Card and photo ID.
Muswellbrook Shire Council Mayor Rod Scholes said Mt Arthur coal mine operator BHP was the driving force behind the clinic and, through cooperation with the federal government, had obtained an additional 600 Pfizer vaccines which will be administered at the clinic.
"BHP are paying for the medical staff and have arranged the actual vaccines and Muswellbrook Council will do most of the support work," Mr Scholes said.
Mr Scholes said representatives from BHP had approached the council about the initiative and discussions had been underway for about four weeks to organise the clinic.
"It's great that we've got this thanks to BHP and I think it's a great idea," Mr Scholes said.
Vaccination against COVID-19 will be a condition of entry to all BHP mine sites and offices from January, 2022, however BHP said the policy will be implemented earlier at some mine sites such as Mt Arthur coal due to local risk factors.
"The science is clear that widespread vaccination saves lives," BHP Minerals Australia president Edgar Basto said in a statement announcing the company's decision.
"We have undertaken a thorough assessment and believe that this is the right path forward to protect the health of our people, their families and the communities where we operate, including remote Indigenous communities, while continuing to safely run our operations."
BHP has already trialled workplace-based vaccinations at its Mt Arthur mine site as part of an official pilot program supported by the National COVID-19 Vaccination Taskforce.
The Muswellbrook Indoor Sports Centre is located on Rutherford Road in Muswellbrook.