A year ago this week, Missouri had just passed 7,000 confirmed COVID cases. Now Freeman Hospital in Joplin is offering free, drive-thru Covid 19 vaccine clinics. KRPS’s Fred Fletcher-Fierro has more.

The number of people across the US being inoculated from Covid 19 has slowed down in recent weeks. So far, 37.1% of Missouri residents have received their first shot of a Covid vaccine. Nearly 27% percent of residents have completed their immunizations. Combined, that’s over 3.8 million shots.

To reach people who want to be vaccinated but not leave the comfort of their cars, Freeman in Joplin is hosting twice-monthly drive-up vaccination clinics. The hospital is reporting that even when they held mass vaccine events, there were still open slots, and they want to reach those people that would prefer to receive a shot on their own. Sixty, first-dose vaccination appointments will be offered every other week. To register, call 417-502-SHOT or visit Freemanhealth.com/covid19 for more information.