Augusta University Health opens COVID-19 vaccination clinic in Aiken County

Augusta University Health has partnered with Aiken Technical College to increase the number of people vaccinated in the local area through a dedicated COVID-19 vaccination clinic in Aiken County.

Vaccinations will be administered at Aiken Technical College’s Gregg-Graniteville Student Activities Center (900 Building) at 2276 Jefferson Davis Highway, with appointments made available as supply permits. Appointments will be available to members of the public meeting criteria for the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control’s Phase 1a, including adults 65 and over. Eligible individuals must register in advance for an appointment on the AU Health website.

“We are grateful for the opportunity to work with Aiken Tech to increase the number of people vaccinated within the CSRA,” said Augusta University President Brooks A. Keel, PhD. “Getting the vaccine to every area resident is our top priority in our quest to end this pandemic, and this location will greatly increase our ability to do exactly that.”

As of Jan. 28, AU Health had administered 13,500 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine and expects to that number to climb to 17,000 by Feb. 5. From the onset of the pandemic, AU Health has been a regional leader in COVID-19 screening and testing, with nearly 200,000 COVID-19 tests resulted to date.

“We appreciate the opportunity partner with local officials and Aiken Technical College to significantly increase our capacity to effectively vaccinate eligible individuals throughout the CSRA,” said AU Health CEO Katrina Keefer. “Our efforts to end this pandemic rely on leveraging the resources available to us for the benefit of the communities we serve. It is a privilege to work with community partners to offer widespread protection by leveraging our expertise in efficiently distributing this vaccine.”

AU Health is the first area health system to offer COVID-19 vaccinations to South Carolina residents through a dedicated vaccine clinic location expected to accommodate approximately 3,000 individuals per clinic day as supplies allow. The new location is one of several AU Health public vaccination locations throughout the CSRA and the first to be homed in South Carolina.

“We are honored to partner with AU Health to serve our region,” said Aiken Technical College President Dr. Forest Mahan. “Now is a critical time to slow the spread, and we all must do our part to protect the community against COVID. The vaccination roll out is a critical effort, and Aiken Technical College is proud to provide space for a vaccination clinic on our campus. The service AU Health is providing will have a great impact on the citizens of our region, and we appreciate what they and other health care providers are doing in this fight against COVID.”

Individuals should use the AU Health website for information about eligibility and registration. Appointments cannot be made by phone and individuals are asked not to call Aiken Tech or AU Health so phone lines can remain open for urgent and emergent needs.

“There is a tremendous need in our multi-county region for increasing vaccinations with additional providers as the vaccine supply increases,” said South Carolina Sen. Tom Young, Jr. “We are grateful to the AU Health team for their willingness to help meet those needs in our region, and we appreciate Aiken Tech’s agreeing to provide the necessary space in a central location to help get more people vaccinated.”