DALLAS (1080 KRLD)- The mayor of Dallas and the chief of Dallas Fire Rescue both received COVID boosters and flu vaccines Friday. They are urging people to ensure vaccinations are up to date ahead of holiday gatherings.
"I just want everybody to know these shots don't hurt," says Mayor Eric Johnson. "It's easy. You're in and out. We have great partners like CVS who are making it very, very convenient so people need to do it and then they can go about their business and enjoy the holidays without worrying about getting anybody sick."
Friday, the Texas Department of State Health Services says hospitals had 1,750 COVID patients, up from about a thousand two weeks ago but less than three thousand the first week of December 2021.
The CDC describes flu levels in Texas as "very high." DSHS says nine percent of hospital visits were because of flu symptoms over the past week compared to about three percent the first week of December last year.
"At the Christmas dinner table, think about the elderly in your family, what can you do to protect yourself but also protect them?" says CVS Pharmacist Mohammed Alkhatib.
Johnson says he went to CVS with Dallas Fire Rescue Chief Dominique Artis to show how quickly people can get vaccinated and move on with their day.
"It's perfectly safe to get them both done at the same time, same arm even," Johnson says. "People need to remember the flu is a serious disease, too."
People can schedule vaccinations HERE.
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