CHARLOTTE - Honeywell, Atrium Health, Tepper Sports & Entertainment and the Charlotte Motor Speedway have announced a unique public-private partnership with the State of North Carolina, and backed by Gov. Roy Cooper, to support the goal of 1 million COVID-19 vaccinations by July 4, 2021. In collaboration with the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), the City of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, these organizations aim to unleash their combined strength to vaccinate as many frontline workers, members of the general public and of underserved communities as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Today's announcement aligns with Gov. Cooper's Jan. 12 announcement at a news conference in Raleigh that several mass vaccination sites are being established across the state to boost the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine. The governor and Secretary of DHHS Dr. Mandy Cohen announced Atrium Health as the health system to offer mass vaccination events in Charlotte and surrounding counties.
To meet the goal of 1 million vaccinations, the partners will work together to administer the vaccine, provide logistics and operations support and offer a venue for an efficient and safe initiative. Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte Motor Speedway and a soon to be determined location in the Winston-Salem area will serve as initial venues to contribute to this public-private initiative. More details will be shared in the coming days on the process and timing for each of the mass vaccination events.
"Getting vaccines in people's arms as quickly and equitably as possible is a top priority for North Carolina," said Gov. Cooper. "Partnerships with businesses, health providers and government like this can help get it done."
"I am very pleased that Honeywell is leading this coalition of private and public organizations that will strive to put North Carolina on the top of the list for vaccination rates in the United States and to get as many North Carolinians vaccinated as soon as possible," said Darius Adamczyk, chairman and chief executive officer of Honeywell. "Honeywell is world renowned for managing highly complex logistics, information technology and operational issues, and we're looking forward to helping streamline the vaccination process to deliver as many vaccinations as efficiently as possible to our community."
"I'm incredibly proud of the nationally leading models of care we continue to offer our community, like distributing over 2 million masks, eliminating testing disparities in underserved communities, developing our Atrium Health Hospital at Home program, and now this incredible goal of reaching 1 million vaccinations by July 4," said Eugene A. Woods, president and chief executive officer of Atrium Health. "Through public-private partnerships like this, we have the opportunity to defeat this virus, allow children to return to school and help local businesses return to normal operations."
"COVID-19 has had a devastating impact on our community and country," said David Tepper, owner of Tepper Sports & Entertainment. "We stand ready to join Honeywell, Atrium Health and Governor Cooper in the effort to administer vaccines and defeat this virus. We hope that our participation will serve as a model for other venues."
"In our business, it's all about speed and safety," said Marcus Smith, president and chief executive officer, Speedway Motorsports. "Last year we moved quickly alongside Atrium Health to create on-site drive-thru testing as well as produce COVID-safe drive-in movies, concerts and our Christmas light show. We want to accelerate the process of getting the general public back to its next normal, where people can enjoy everyday activities and sporting events safely. We're ready to support this aggressive vaccine initiative and help restore our community to good health."
"Our entire community must join together to beat this pandemic and I appreciate all of our partners coming together to help address this critical issue," said Vi Lyles, Mayor of the City of Charlotte. "We look forward to supporting this work to ensure that our residents have access to COVID-19 vaccines, and we all look forward to working together to help our community get vaccinated in the coming weeks and months."
"We look forward to working with our partners to make this event happen," said Gibbie Harris, public health director for Mecklenburg County. "The only way to get the virus behind us is for people to be vaccinated. I also hope that by July, by working together, we can exceed the goal of 1 million people in this region starting to be protected."
Getting a COVID-19 vaccine is the best way for people to protect themselves, their families and their community. As larger portions of the population are vaccinated, the whole community becomes better protected. More information about Atrium Health's vaccination plans for the public, including frequently asked questions and scheduling vaccine, can be found at AtriumHealth.org/COVID19Vaccine.
