Lem Turner Road Walmart’s Switch From Moderna Vaccine To Pfizer Vaccine Confuses Some Seniors

JACKSONVILLE, Florida – The Walmart store in Lem Turner Road on the north side of Jacksonville will administer the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine, according to a statement the company sent to News4Jax on Thursday.

The statement said that as the 12100 Lem Turner Road store switches from Moderna vaccine to Pfizer vaccine, Walmart is directing patients to two nearby locations to receive their second dose of Moderna vaccine. These locations are the Walmart store at 6830, boulevard Normandy. and the store at 13227 City Square Drive.

The release also said that Walmart pharmacists are contacting patients who received their first dose at the Lem Turner Road store to make an appointment for the second dose of the Moderna vaccine at the Normandy Boulevard store or City Square Drive.

Jacqueline Richardson, 71, a Northside resident, said she and other family members were put in a confusing situation when they learned they could not get their second dose of the Moderna COVID vaccine. 19 at the Walmart store on Lem Turner Road.

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“I’m frustrated and I know how to use a computer, but it doesn’t make sense to go through all of this,” Richardson said.

Richardson said that on February 18, she and other parents in her age group received the first dose of the Moderna vaccine. She said after receiving their injection, they were asked to go home and make an appointment online to receive their second dose.

“When I went online to register, there were no appointments available. The next day I checked, he said the same thing. I waited until Monday, and I checked, and it said the same thing, ”Richardson explained.

She called the store and said she spoke to a pharmacy technician who said, “The governor took out the Moderna vaccine and was sending them the Pfizer.

She said the technician she spoke to couldn’t help her and also seemed confused on what to do.

“She said, ‘You can check with River City,” Richardson said. “I told him I had already checked there, and it says the same thing online: no appointments available.”

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Richardson said she contacted the health department and was directed to the Florida Vaccines website to look for Walmart locations where she could make an appointment for her second dose of the Moderna vaccine.

“So there were none available in the city of Jacksonville,” she said. “The closest to us was in Leon County, Tallahassee.”

She later learned that Edwards Waters College offered the Moderna vaccine. She also learned that she and her loved ones wouldn’t have to make an appointment – just show up.

RELATED: Where, how to get COVID-19 vaccines in Northeast Florida

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has warned people not to mix vaccines except in “exceptional situations” because there hasn’t been enough research into the side effects of mixing vaccines.

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Walmart headquarters then released a statement to News4Jax which reads:

“The Lem Turner store will administer the Pfizer vaccine to serve even more people in our communities.

“As the Lem Turner store switches from Moderna vaccine to Pfizer vaccine, we are referring patients to two nearby sites to receive their second doses of Moderna. These locations are our Normandy store (6830 Normandy Jax) and our Airport store (13227 City Square Blvd Jax).

“Walmart pharmacists are contacting patients who received their first dose at Lem Turner to schedule their second Moderna vaccination appointment at one of the two stores listed above.”

Pfizer injections will be given at a pop-up vaccination event that will take place Thursday through Monday outside the Walmart on Lem Turner Road. Eligible patients can book an appointment at www.walmart.com/COVIDvaccine.