By MAGGIE MCMURRAY
Moapa Valley Progress
A free flu shot clinic benefitted over a hundred Moapa Valley residents on Saturday morning. Assemblyman James Oscarson, in partnership with drug store Walgreens, sponsored the clinic. It was the third annual flu-shot clinic Oscarson has helped sponsor in the community.
This year’s clinic was held in conjunction with the monthly drive-thru free food bank sponsored by Three Square. Individuals who came to participate in the food distribution were able to receive their flu-shot without having to leave their car.
Although turnout for the drive-thru clinic was great, Walgreens brought enough vaccine that there were still shots left over at the end of the food distribution. So Bren McClean, Oscarson’s constituent liaison, made a call to Rik Eide, organizer of the Logandale Fall Festival. She asked if the remaining shots could be distributed there at the festival. Eide was happy to welcome the clinic and gave them vendor space. So the Walgreens personnel relocated their booth to the fairgrounds They stayed and offered free flu shots, while they lasted, to all attendees over the age of seven.
The shots were provided and administered by the downtown Las Vegas Walgreens and their personnel. Store manager Cathy Agundez came to help with paperwork duties on her day off, donating her time.
“It’s an opportunity for us at Walgreens to help the community get well, stay well, and live well,” Agundez said. “Plus, every person who gets a shot is actually benefitting others because for every shot we give here, we donate one free shot to someone in need.”
Agundez said this was her second time in Logandale and she had jumped at the chance to comeback. “This is such a beautiful and peaceful community,” she said. “I really love it out here.”
McClean was pleased with how the day went. “Walgreens is such a great partner,” she said. “They are so easy to work with and always so willing to help. We really appreciate our community partners that make these events possible.”
McClean went on to say that the next immunization event Oscarson is planning on sponsoring will be another senior health fair to benefit the senior community.
Oscarson has been steadfast in making sure that rural areas of Clark County, such as Moapa Valley, receive the same access to health care benefits as do those who live in more populous areas of Nevada such as Las Vegas. He was not able to attend this event, but was pleased with reports of how it went.
“Flu shots are a preventative health measure that is essential to our families, especially the children and the elderly,” Oscarson said. “This opportunity to protect our families would be much more difficult without the continued support of our community partners and their commitment to increasing access to health care in Nevada’s rural areas.”
If you have not received a flu shot yet but want to, it is not too late. Flu shots are still being offered at local businesses such as Lin’s and there may be other flu shot clinics offered by other organizations in the upcoming months.
