Updated: UDC’s Covid-19 vaccination site closing June 24, and other local options for getting your first or second shot

Updated June 1, 2021 with UDC Covid-19 vaccination site’s June hours, and new information on the shot available there.

by Marlene Berlin

Some of the District’s walk-up Covid-19 vaccination sites will be closing toward the end of June. The UDC site, the former Walgreens at 4225 Connecticut Avenue, will be one of them.

According to vaccinate.dc.gov, the UDC site is open Wednesdays and Thursdays through June 24th, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. The initial announcement from Mayor Muriel Bowser and DC Health said this clinic would be administering the one-shot Johnson and Johnson vaccine, but that has changed. The UDC site will continue to offer the Moderna shot. That means that those who receive their first dose there will need to find another provider for the second shot.

DC Health directs people to find a provider at vaccines.gov. Here are some local options that weren’t listed on the government site at last check.

• The CVS stores at at 4309 and 5013 Connecticut Avenue. CVS.com says “walk-ins are welcome in most stores,” but they are also scheduling appointments online.
• Pill Plus Pharmacy at 4215 Connecticut Avenue has shifted its walk-up vaccination hours to 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. If you want to check in before you head out, or find out what vaccines they are offering, the phone number is 703-786-8402.

Primary care physicians are also missing from vaccines.gov. I called my internist to schedule a wellness visit (something that Medicare provides healthy older folks who don’t have any reason to go to a doctor) and heard on their hold message that their Medstar practice is offering the Covid vaccine to their patients. This came as a surprise since I have had my ear to the ground about vaccine news.

After a lot of web searching, I found another practice in the area, Foxhall Internists, offering Covid vaccines to adult patients. And Kaiser Permanente started offering vaccines this week at Capitol Hill Medical Center. Check here for more information.

There appears no systematic rollout of information about primary care physicians offering the vaccine. But it is not clear how quickly you can get a vaccine from your physician compared to the many pharmacies that are offering them. Always worth a call if you don’t want to visit a pharmacy or a mass vaccination site.

Additionally, the District will administer the vaccine to homebound residents who call 855-363-0333.

And new this week: DC is offering vaccination clinics to employers, and faith-based and community organizations who wish to host one for workers and members. Here’s the information.

Did you get vaccinated at one of the local pharmacies, the UDC walk-up site, or a local doctor’s office? We’d like to hear how it went.