Interior Health is hosting a drop-in COVID-19 vaccine clinic at the Cascades Casino parking lot in Kamloops this Sunday, June 6.

People over the age of 12 (born in 2009 or earlier) who live or work in Kamloops will be able to register and get their their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.

The clinic will be in operation from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. that day.

“No advance appointments are necessary for this clinic,” Interior Health said in a statement.

“Kamloops residents who are not able to attend the neighbourhood vaccination clinic can still receive a vaccine at other times by booking appointments through the provincial system and travelling to the nearest clinic to them.”

Speaking on NL Newsday, Dr. Carol Fenton, the Medical Health Officer for Kamloops, says she is “very happy” to see the number of new cases in the area trend downwards. She says one of the reasons for that decline is the uptake in vaccines.

“My only area of concern that we’re looking at right now is getting the youth and the young adults vaccinated,” Fenton said. “We’re seeing a good amount of turnout, but we could see higher and they’re going to be the population that brings us over the finish line.”

In the Kamloops area, about 70 per cent of people over the age of 18 have gotten at least one dose of a COVID vaccine. That number increases to 82 per cent when you only consider people over the age of 50 who have been vaccinated.

“I’m finding myself looking forward to the updates, that’s good news,” Fenton added. “It’s really hard to attribute changes when we’re doing so many different things to stop the spread of COVID, but certainly vaccines are making a huge impact.”