How to get the COVID-19 vaccine at Fenway Park

Fenway Park will take hundreds of Massachusetts residents through its gates every day – but not for baseball, of course.

The 112-year-old Red Sox home serves as the state’s second-largest COVID-19 vaccination site, with plans to administer approximately 500 doses of vaccinations per day when Phase 2 of Massachusetts begins Monday before it ends until 1,250 styg. the next week.

Government officials are working to build more than 100 public vaccination sites, large and small, across Massachusetts. However, it is hard to say that they are as unique as those in Jersey Street.

This is how it works:

First, fif you are eligible:

The Fenway Park vaccination site is open to all Massachusetts residents – not just Bostonians – who are eligible to receive the vaccine under the state’s three-phase priority plan.

From the opening day on Monday, this means that someone admitted to Phase 1 should not yet receive the vaccine and the first Phase 2 priority group: residents older than 75 years.

Government Charlie Baker’s government said the rollout would extend to other Phase 2 groups – individuals over the age of 65, people with health conditions making them vulnerable to COVID-19, and frontline workers such as teachers – later in February.

The rest of the public will be eligible for Phase 3, which officials say is on track to begin in April.

Although it is unclear when fans will be allowed back into stadiums in Massachusetts, officials plan to keep the site in operation at least at the start of the baseball season this spring.

Rachel Wilson, chief operating officer of CIC Health, the Cambridge company that manages the Fenway Park vaccination site, told Boston.com that they will not be open during games, but hope to have the Red Sox at least limited hours. play.

“Our goal is to keep it as long as possible, even if there’s a break in the schedule,” Wilson said.

Make an appointment:

Individuals can register for an appointment via the CIC Health website. Click “Schedule Now” under Fenway Park and search by date to find an open time slot.

Appointments are currently available on weekdays from 09:00 to 17:00, although CIC Health says they plan to extend the hours to 08:00 to 18:00 and also on weekends in a few weeks.

However, there is a caveat: due to the limited national supply of vaccine doses, appointments in Massachusetts are scarce and replenish rapidly. For example, the time life at Fenway Park was already booked until the first week of February.

Officials are currently planning to name new appointments for the coming week every Thursday, but that may change later to ensure everyone gets a good chance to book a lock.

(Again, there are more than a hundred other vaccination sites in Massachusetts, including another mass vaccination center at the Reggie Lewis Center in the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston.)

Almost there:

As usual, there are a number of public transportation options to get to Fenway, whether by MBTA subway, commuter train or bus.

Parking around Fenway is usually quite limited and, unlike the vaccine itself, is not free.

There are several dozen paid parking lots and garages within walking distance of the park. However, as traffic is generally declining due to the pandemic, officials suggest that on-street parking be an option. There is also a reserved parking space along Jersey Street between Van Ness Street and Boylston Street.

For the sake of your meter, staff estimate that the whole process takes about 45 minutes to an hour.

Once you are there:

OK, now the exciting part:

Patients enter the vaccination site through gate A of Fenway Park – located on the corner of Brookline Avenue and Jersey Street – which runs along the third baseline.

Upon arrival, they are asked to check in and complete a health check. Facial covers are required on site and patients will be asked to wear a fresh surgical mask provided by staff to replace or put on their existing mask.

“It’s very important to us to make sure no COVID is spread here,” said Wilson, chief operating officer of CIC Health.

After check-in, the patient will then stand in line while waiting to be called to vaccination stations.

Both Red Sox and CIC Health officials pointed out that they would arrange the appointment process to avoid outside waiting. While they plan to stay open and keep appointments during inclement weather like snow, staff will notify individuals to cancel and reschedule their appointments if conditions are unsafe.

When a station opens, patients will be led to the venue (staff will also have wheelchairs available) to a row of tables near the Sam Bas bar of the ballpark, where staff in protective gear inflict the actual shots. Fenway is currently administering the vaccine developed by Pfizer.

CIC Health staff say the process of getting the vaccine itself takes about five minutes.

Patients will then be taken for 15 minutes to an adjacent observation area (or for some patients 30 minutes) to be monitored in case they have immediate reactions to the vaccine. It is during that time that staff will arrive and help them plan their second booster shot for about 21 days later.

After patients have completed their time in the observation area, the site also offers several secluded vantage points with a view of the field. The site also has buttons that say, “I was vaccinated at Fenway Park.”

Following a soft launch this past Thursday and Friday, staff hope the photo opportunities and buttons serve as a tool to encourage other residents to get the vaccine, amid evidence that about a quarter of Americans are hesitant about the shots.

“It’s pretty surreal,” Wilson said. “Our goal is to get everyone vaccinated here so we can play again as soon as possible.”